Irreplaceable Friend
by Russa
Summary: Prince Jaden meets Jesse, a young wanderer, and learns that Jesse is the possessor of the legendary Rainbow Dragon, which has made him the target of Demon Witch Yubel. Jaden has to protect Jesse from Yubel or the Dark World could fall into utter chaos.
1. Chapter 1

Hi there! I've been thinking about this fic for a while now and thought I'd post it and give it a try. This is my first time writing (or trying to write) a Yu-gi-oh! GX fic. This story takes place in the Dark World, and Jaden is the prince of the Dark World. This is not really a take on his past life as prince. It's more of an original adventure done by me, with some similarities to his past life. This is for the most part a Jaden and Jesse adventure friendship fic, but I might include some mild Jaden/Jesse moments. Just nothing drastically yaoi like a kiss, as this is my first time trying such a thing.

Well, anyway, I hope you like it. Here is Chapter 1.

--

Chapter 1 - The Wanderer

Jaden ran through the streets of the village. He glanced up at the blue glowing path of the meteor. The meteor was the light of the Dark World. Its path was like the sunlight to the Dark World's vast desolate terrain. As it streaked across the sky, it acted like a clock as well, depending on which way it was going. Right now it was heading north. Jaden had spent a lot of time learning about its flight path and knew that right now it meant he was late in getting back to the castle. His father was probably going to give him a lecture about how princes shouldn't wander outside the castle. But even though he was the prince, Jaden hated being cooped up inside the castle walls all day. Not when there was so much to explore and adventure to be had outside. He was always sneaking out to have fun in the village just east of the castle. He enjoyed playing games with the kids there. Jaden looked up at the meteor again. It was way ahead of him now, heading off into the north and leaving a blue light trail in its wake. Jaden picked up his pace.

A few minutes later, he arrived back at the castle and snuck in through a side door in the east wall. Sure that no one saw him, Jaden tipp-toed toward the main door. He was surprised to see a young boy sitting on the steps in front of it.

"Ooh, you're busted," the boy said, grinning at Jaden.

Jaden relaxed slightly and let go a sigh of relief. It was just his best friend Tory. Tory was Jaden only friend inside the castle and was also the only one that Jaden told about his adventures outside the castle walls.

"You snuck out again?" Tory asked grouchily. "I was waiting here almost all day to be able to play a game with you."

Jaden put his hands behind his head, giving a playful frown. "Aw, lay off, will you? There's just so much to do out there, whereas in here it's boring. Life is more than studying, you know."

"Yeah, I know. Chores can be boring too." Tory said, giving a sigh. "I'm just a servant, but you're the prince. You can get away with anything."

Jaden laughed. "Almost anything. I may be the prince, but I'm not allowed to sneak out either."

"So, why do you then?"

Jaden pondered this for a second and then shrugged. "Hmm, good question. I suppose because it's fun."

"Really?" Tory asked.

"Sure," Jaden replied, grinning. "Tell you what, tomorrow we can both go. I can introduce you to my friends in the village and we can play some games."

Tory's expression suddenly went cold. "Friends? You made friends out there?"

Jaden nodded, pretty much ignoring the cold tone in Tory's voice. "Yeah, I bet you'll like them. C'mon! It'll be fun."

"Fine," Tory agreed.

"Good," Jaden said, putting his hand on Tory's shoulder and heading off to the door. "Now, let's go to bed. I'm exhausted and I have a feeling tomorrow's going to be very exciting."

The next day, Jaden met up with Tory by the east wall. He showed Tory the small side door. The door was painted the same colour as the stone castle walls, that Tory wouldn't even think that there was a door there if Jaden hadn't opened it. Jaden went out first, checking to see that none of the Fiend Soldiers were patrolling around. Why the King had Fiends as guards, Jaden could never figure out. They were big and mean and pretty much nobody liked them. If they ever caught him sneaking out and ignoring his duties as prince, they would for sure take him before the King. The King would give him a stern lecture that Jaden never looked forward to. The coast was clear today, so Jaden motioned for Tory to follow him. He then closed the door as soon as Tory came out.

"All right, let's go!" Jaden cheered.

The two boys ran off east along the path, Jaden leading the way. The village was about three or so kilometers away. A short while later, they arrived.

Tory looked at the small bricked buildings of the village, trying to understand what was so special about it. The buildings didn't even look all that great. In fact, some of them looked like they were falling apart. And most of the people seemed to be ordinary, ragged people like the castle servants.

"And you find this exciting to come here every day?" Tory questioned.

Jaden nodded. "Of course," he said, giving a broad grin. "The kids here are fun to duel against. They're pretty good."

"They don't take advantage of you because you're the prince?"

"Nope. And you worry too much. I'm fine. Look."

Jaden pointed to his outfit. Tory noticed that Jaden didn't have his royal gold wrist bands on; and the gold clips that held his red cape to his shoulders had been replaced by a rusted brass buckle that fastened a brown cloak about Jaden's shoulders instead. Jaden had obviously thought that this was enough of a disguise because he kept the pants and shirt of his regular prince outfit on. Tory then suddenly noticed that Jaden wasn't beside him anymore. He looked ahead and saw that Jaden was entering the village without him.

Jaden turned and looked back at his friend. "Hey Tory, what's the hold up?" he called. "C'mon!"

Tory ran to catch up and they entered the village together. Jaden right away led Tory over to some kids where having a duel by a fountain. Strength in the Dark World was mostly measured through dueling and Jaden liked nothing better than to have a game with the best of them.

Jaden called out to the group of kids, waving cheerily. The kids all smiled and ran to greet him. He was obviously very popular around here. Tory tried not to frown at kids that were so friendly with Jaden. He couldn't help it really. Jaden was _his _best friend, and he didn't really like to share him. But Tory knew that could also be difficult as Jaden could make friends easily with almost anybody.

"Hey guys, are Syrus and Alexis around?" Jaden asked the kids.

"We're over here, Jay!"

Jaden looked over to where a short, light-blue haired boy and a tall blonde haired girl were standing in front of a grey-stoned house. He waved to them and they came over to join him and Tory.

"Hi, Jaden," Syrus greeted. "Here to duel some more?"

Jaden smiled. "Sure. I'm ready to roll anytime you are."

"Jaden, do you have to duel?" Tory interrupted, frowning. "We both know that no one can beat you."

"Maybe you're right," Jaden agreed, bursting out laughing.

"Who's your friend?" Alexis asked.

"This is my best friend Tory," Jaden answered. "Tory, these are my friends from the village, Alexis and Syrus."

"Hello," Tory, Alexis, and Syrus all greeted to one another.

"So, Jaden, are we going to duel?" Syrus asked. "I think I've finally found a strategy to beat you."

"All right, Sy, let's go!" Jaden agreed.

"But Jaden..." Tory tried to protest.

Jaden smiled back over his shoulder at Tory, as he followed Syrus off to a spot to duel. "Lighten up, will you? You know, you should get in on the action too. Why don't you face Alexis? The winners of each duel can face each other."

Alexis took out her deck. "Hey, sounds like fun. You wanna duel Tory?"

"Fine," Tory said, sighing and taking out his deck too.

The duels didn't last long. Tory was never that much into dueling as Jaden was. He lost to Alexis pretty quickly, getting crushed under her effective use of spells. Tory didn't like to lose either, but Jaden often told him that if he didn't even try hard, than that's what happens and you just have to find a better strategy for the next time. Tory and Alexis turned to watch the duel between Jaden and Syrus. Syrus had his Stealthroid on the feild and no magic cards in play. Jaden had FlameWingman on his feild, and had just played Hero Oversoul to call out Bubbleman. Well, Syrus fought hard, but in the end, Jaden won. As far as Tory was concerned, Jaden and his deck of Elemental Heroes was unbeatable. No one has yet won against him. Well, several duels later, Tory was getting bored and insistent that they move on to do something else.

"C'mon, Jaden, let's go get something to eat," Tory said, grabbing Jaden's arm and tugging him away.

Jaden gave a cry of surprise at being pulled away so suddenly. His stomach then gave a loud grumble and he grinned.

"Well, now that you mention it, I am hungry. We can eat at the market."

Jaden then led the way off to the market, which was close to the south end of the village. On the way, something caught Jaden's attention not far away. A bright, teal-haired boy appeared in view in the intersection off to Jaden's right. The boy seemed to be in a terrible hurry. He glanced behind him breifly, gave a shout, and ran off again. A group of Demon Soldiers then appeared close behind, chasing after him. Jaden didn't know why the Demon Soldiers were chasing the boy, but he decided that he had to help the boy out. He was about to run off after them, when he felt Tory grab a hold of his hand in a tight grip.

"Tory... what?" Jaden asked urgently.

"Jaden, come on." Tory said. "Let's go to the market. I'm starving!"

Jaden frowned. "Didn't you see that? That guy is in trouble."

"So?" Tory questioned coldly.

"So, I have to help him," Jaden replied, wrenching his hand out of Tory's grip.

Tory frowned. Jaden relaxed slightly and let go a quick smile.

"Go on ahead to the market without me. It's just a couple blocks that way." He pointed south-east from where they were. "I'll meet you there later."

With that, Jaden ran off after the Demon Soldiers and the boy.

Meanwhile, the boy had gotten cornerned by the demons on the edge of a forest. He had his back to a tree and was glaring defiantly at his harassers.

"Leave me alone!" The boy snapped. "What do you want?"

"Just give us the Rainbow Dragon," one of the Demon Soldiers (probably the leader based on his tough posture) ordered, "and maybe we'll let you go."

"I don't know what you're talking about. And even if I did, I wouldn't give the Rainbow Dragon to the likes of you."

The Demon Soldier leader pointed his jagged sword at the boy. "I know for a fact that you can use the Crystal Beasts. They are connected to the Rainbow Dragon. That means you must have the Rainbow Dragon. Give it to us! Now!"

"No!" the boy cried, keeping up his defiant glare.

A blueish cat with a red jewel on the end of its tail then appeared by the boy's feet. It hissed angrily at the Demon Soldiers. The demons seemed unindimidated by its attempt to protect the boy.

"What's this thing? Your pet cat?" one demon asked, snickering.

"Aw, look. It thinks it stands a chance against us," another jeered.

The blueish cat was now showing its teeth at them in a growl. The demons advanced on the boy and his cat, grinning wickedly.

"Hey!! Leave them alone!" a new voice shouted.

The Demon Soldies all turned to see who had interrupted them. Jaden stood there behind them, a rock in his fist.

"Why should we?" the leader Demon Soldier asked, frowning at Jaden. "And who are you?"

"Me?" Jaden inquired, pointing to himself. "I'm Jaden. Now why don't you guys stop harassing this kid and beat it."

"We're not leaving until he give us the Rainbow Dragon!"

Jaden cocked his head in confusion. "The what?"

"Enough talk!" The Demon Soldier leader shouted. He leaped at the boy, raising his sword to strike. "Give us the Rainbow Dragon!"

"No! Stop!" Jaden yelled. He quickly called out FlameWingman. "FlameWingman, stop these demons with your Fire Blast!"

FlameWingman reved up his fire to shoot at the demons. But Jaden then realized that the flame would not only strike at the demons, but the boy too, and might also cause a forest fire. He quickly called back FlameWingman, and then tried Plan B of hitting the demons over the head with the rock. He hit one and the demon fell to the ground out cold. But during this time the Demon Soldier leader had gotten to the tree, where he had his sword against the boy's throat. The boy was refusing to bend under the leader's interrogations and the leader was losing his patience. He pressed his sword harder against the boy's throat, causing a small amount of blood to flow. Jaden quickly called out Neos. Neos charged at the Demon Soldier leader, but got blocked by the rest of the group. Jaden groaned. Saving the day was a lot harder than it looked.

Suddenly, the bluelish cat (which everyone seemed to have forgotten about after Jaden showed up) jumped at the demon leader that was hurting its master. It scratched at the demon leader's legs in an attempt to help. The demon leader turned his attention to the cat, raising his sword.

"No! Don't hurt her!" the boy cried out desperately.

"Hand over the Rainbow Dragon, and maybe I won't kill her," the demon leader said wickedly, pointing his sword at the cat.

"Ruby!" the boy yelled.

The blueish cat, Ruby, hissed at the demon leader and arked her tail forward. The red jewel on the end of her tail glowed brightly. Something in the boy's haversack, that was slung over his shoulder, then glowed brightly too. It was a yellow crystal, which floated out of the haversack. It stopped in between the boy and the demon leader, morphing into a big white tiger with yellow jewels on its sides. The tiger roared and then pounced on the Demon Soldiers, striking out with its strong claws. Soon, the Demon Soldiers were dealt with, vanishing in flashes of light. The tiger disappeared too, going back into its crystal form.

The boy picked up the crystal from where it landed on the ground and put it back in his haversack. The blueish cat, Ruby, remained and she scampered up onto his shoulder. Jaden smiled and came over to join them.

"That was amazing!" Jaden exclaimed. "Are you okay?"

The boy nodded. "Yeah. And thanks for trying to help, uh... Jaden."

Jaden shrugged sheepishly. "Well, I didn't exactly help. And how do you know my name?"

The boy smiled. "You told it to those Demon Soldiers when you appeared to help me."

Jaden grinned back. "Oh yeah! By the way, who are you?"

The boy sighed. "I'm no one really. I'm just a wanderer, not really belonging anywhere."

"A wanderer, huh? Wow!"

Jaden then noted the boy's clothes. The boy wore a grey-brownish shirt, baggy navy blue pants with a purple patch on one knee, a long blue jacket with green patches on the elbows, and soft grey boots. Jaden looked into the boy's smiling face and was a bit surprised to see such clear emerald eyes. They were so clear and bright, almost as bright as the boy's spiky teal-coloured hair. He wondered why those Demon Soldiers were chasing the boy anyway and what the Rainbow Dragon could be. That it was a dragon was obvious. But what did it do that creatures were after it with force? The boy also seemed to have many mysteries about him. But having just met him, Jaden didn't know what to make of all this. Nonetheless, he smiled at the boy again and held out his hand for him to shake.

"Well, hi there, Mr. Wanderer," Jaden said cheerfully.

The boy laughed and shook Jaden's hand. "Just call me Jesse."

--

Well, there you are. Yeah, I know the duels I only breifly mentioned in the middle of the chapter were kind of lame. But dueling is not my strong point about Yu-gi-oh! GX; so I'm sorry that I couldn't give you more. I will try and do better the next time. I know that Tory was kind of a rude friend in wanting Jaden all to himself, but that part of his personality plays a key part in the story later. I don't the real name of Jaden's best friend in his past in the Dark World, so I just called him Tory. And yay! Jaden and Jesse have met each other! The part when Ruby used her powers to call out Topaz Tiger was probably my favourite part. It was alot of fun to write. Well, as to the powers to the Rainbow Dragon and it's connection to Jesse, you'll have to wait to find out. Please review after reading, okay? Remember this is my first time writing a Yu-gi-oh! GX fic, so please go easy on me. Constructive criticism is accepted, but don't flame please! Well, that being said, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this fic and will come back to read more. I hope to have the second chapter up soon. Cya then!


	2. Chapter 2

Hi again! Wow, this story already has three Story Alerts and a Favourite. That's amazing! I feel so happy that people like this story. Thank you! And thanks to those who reviewed. You are awesome and I'm glad that you like it. Haha, I sound like I'm giving an Oscar speech. XD I hope I'm not getting ahead of myself here.

Well anyway, here is chapter 2.

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Chapter 2 - The Start of a Friendship

Even after having only just met him, Jaden could tell that he liked Jesse right away. Jesse just seemed to have something in his smile that made it impossible to not to make you like him. There were so many mysteries about him though. Where did he come from? What was his past like? Did he have some strong connection with the Crystal Beasts and the Rainbow Dragon? When he was not fighting off or running from demons, Jesse looked like he was someone who enjoyed having a good time. Jaden hoped that he would get the chance to learn more about the wanderer.

"Say, Jesse, any idea why those demons were after you?" Jaden asked.

Jesse shrugged and sighed. "No clue."

"They mentioned they were after the Rainbow Dragon," Jaden went on, seemingly answering his own question. "What is it exactly?"

Jesse sighed again. "I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Well, for one reason, I'm not even sure myself."

Jaden was about to question him a bit more on the subject, but the growl of his stomach interrupted him. He couldn't help but laugh as he suddenly remembered that he was hungry. He was supposed to meet up with Tory at the market.

"I just remembered that I'm supposed to meet a friend at the market," Jaden said.

Jesse nodded. "Okay. Thanks again for trying to help. I guess I'll be on my way."

Jaden smiled and put his hand on Jesse's shoulder. "Hold on. You must be hungry after your adventure. Why don't you come with me to the market?"

"Thanks, but I'd rather not," Jesse said.

Jesse then suddenly felt something tugging on his jacket collar. It was Ruby, who seemed to be amusing herself by chewing on it.

"Ruby, stop that!" Jesse scolded.

Ruby stopped and looked at him with innocent eyes. She climbed down off his shoulder and into the haversack. Her head was now peeking up through the flap.

Jaden smiled at Ruby and patted her on the head. "Well, you may not be hungry, but I think she is."

Jesse let go a smile. "I think she likes you, Jaden. I've never seen her take to anybody so fast."

Jaden's stomach then gave another grumble, and this time, Jesse's did too.

Jaden laughed. "I don't know about you, but now, I'm starving. I hear the food at the market is delicious. The fresh fruit, the homemade pies, the best fish you've ever tasted, and..."

"Stop!" Jesse cried, giving a hearty laugh and clamping a hand over Jaden's mouth. "You've talked me into it. Let's go eat!"

Meanwhile, over at the market, Tory was waiting for Jaden rather impatiently. It felt like he had been waiting forever. The food he had gotten lay untouched on the table in front of him. His stomach had been growling for the last hour, and he knew that he should eat it, but he wanted to wait until Jaden arrived. Tory sighed and leaned on his heads. When he did, he finally saw Jaden making his way into the market from the south end. Tory smiled, stood up, and waved to him. The smile faded as Jaden came over and Tory saw that he had someone else with him.

"Who is that?" Tory asked rather rudely, when Jaden and the stranger had joined him at his table.

"This is Jesse," Jaden answered. "He's the guy that was being chased by those demons. He's a wanderer and my new friend."

"Really?" Tory questioned, looked suspiciously at Jesse.

Jesse nodded. "That's the gist of it."

"C'mon, let's eat," Jaden said, sitting himself down and tossing a piece of cheese into his mouth. "I'm so hungry I think I could eat the whole market!"

Jesse sat down next to Jaden, across from Tory, and started to eat. Tory kept glancing up from his plate and giving him a strong look of dislike and suspicion. Jesse wondered what he did that would cause this kid to dislike him so much. He only just met him. Jaden seemed oblivious to it, as he rambled on and on about how the demons had been defeated. It had been an adventure and Jaden was quite keen to have another one.

Awhile later, they were finished with their meal and left the market. Jaden decided to introduce Jesse to Syrus and Alexis and show him the dueling spot. Tory was against the whole thing, wanting to just play with Jaden alone, and as such, thoroughly complained. Jaden, who by now was getting tired of his friend's grumpiness, told him that if was that bored here to just go back home and he'll see him there later. With that, Jaden led Jesse off to the fountain at the east entrance to the village. Tory frowned, decided to suck it up for now, and ran after them.

Soon, they reached the fountain and found Syrus and Alexis sitting on the edge of it and discussing strategies. Jaden called out to them and came over to join them, with Jesse following behind. Introductions were made around. Unlike Tory, Syrus and Alexis made friends with Jesse right away. Jesse was surprised that he was welcomed and fit in with some of Jaden's friends so fast. Indeed, Jaden thought that was pretty amusing. Jaden, Jesse, Syrus, and Alexis were soon enthusiastically discussing strategies and other points of the game. Well, actually, Jesse mostly listened, being as his travels never had much to do with dueling as a game but more for dealing with trouble. Tory was watching them a short distance away, sitting in an open doorway and sulking.

"Say, Jesse, would you like to duel me?" Jaden asked awhile later.

Jesse shrugged, looking very reluctant to do so. "I don't know, Jaden. I don't really have cards like you and your friends do."

Jaden grinned. "So, all the better then. It sounds like it'll be a fun challenge. C'mon! What do you say?"

"Oh, all right," Jesse agreed, letting go a smile.

He pulled back the flap of his haversack and looked at Ruby. "I can't summon anybody without you. Want to help me, girl?"

Ruby climbed out of the haversack and went down to by his feet. She looked back up at him, her tail with the red jewel on the end flicking back and forth. Jesse smiled, bent down, and patted her head.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Jaden and Jesse went to stand across from each other in front of the fountain to duel. Alexis and Syrus went to sit next to Tory to watch. They both wondered how Jesse was going to fight when he didn't seem to have any cards.

"You can start, Jess," Jaden said.

"All right," Jesse agreed, grinning. "Say hello to Amthyst Cat!"

He pulled out a purple crystal from his haversack. The red jewel on Ruby's tail glowed and the crystal glowed too. A sleek beige-furred cat with a purple jewel on its gold-winged necklace then appeared there a moment later. She noticed Jaden standing across from her and Jesse and that he had his deck out. She showed her clean white teeth at teeth at him in a snarl.

"Is this guy causing you trouble, Jesse?" Amthyst Cat asked, frowning at Jaden. "Shall I sink my claws into him for you?"

This made Jaden cringe. "That beast of yours can talk!" he cried in amazement. "And I think she wants to hurt me!"

Amthyst Cat snarled at him, beating her paws on the ground. "'That beast'?! Call me that again and I'll sink my claws into your face!"

Jaden fell silent immediately.

Jesse chuckled. "Easy. This is Jaden, a new friend of mine. He challenged me to a friendly duel. Try not to hurt him too badly, all right?"

Amthyst Cat showed her teeth in a weird cat-tooth grin. "I make no promises," she said.

With that, she pounced at Jaden. Jaden held up his arms protectively in front of his face, and the big cat's claws struck him across his left forearm. He cringed in pain as his lifepoints decreased. Although he was now losing, Jaden couldn't help but be impressed by the strength of Jesse's monsters. But the duel wasn't over yet.

It was Jaden's turn. He called out Neos and had him attack Amthyst Cat. There was an explosion and the beige cat was gone. Everyone expected that after Jaden attacked that all evidence of Amthyst Cat would vanish when she got sent to the graveyard. But instead she just reverted back to her crystal form, which Jesse put back in his haversack. Jesse couldn't help but giggle at the looks on everyone's faces after what happened.

"His monster wasn't destroyed!" Alexis exclaimed in shock.

Jesse smiled. "The Crystal Beasts are special. They can't really be destroyed."

"Really?" Jaden inquired. "That's impressive!"

"Sure is," Jesse agreed. "I bet you're wanting to meet another one, huh? Well, let me introduce you to Saphire Pegasus!"

Jesse took out a blue crystal. Ruby's tail jewel glowed and the crystal did too. A beautiful white-winged horse with blue jewels on its wings and a blue crystal horn on its head then appeared.

"Okay, Saphire Pegasus, let's show them your special power!" Jesse called.

Saphire Pegasus's horn started to flash brightly. The purple crystal of Amthyst Cat came back out of Jesse's haversack. It glowed and Amthyst Cat reappeared on the feild.

Amthyst Cat gave a yawn and stretched. "Thanks, Saphire Pegasus. I feel all stiff from leaving the fight so quickly."

Saphire Pegasus nodded breifly to her. "Don't mention it."

Jaden cringed slightly as Amthyst Cat flashed her teeth at him. 'Whoa, pretty cool effect,' he thought. 'These Crystal Beasts are really amazing.'

Well, it was Jaden's turn again. Jaden drew a card from his deck and got Glow Moss. He summoned it to the feild and then fused it with Neos to make Glow Neos. Glow Neos attacked at Saphire Pegasus. But Jesse pulled out the trap card G-Force, which allowed him to select another Crystal Beast to battle Glow Neos instead. He called out a huge mammoth with a light orange jewel on its head from an orange crystal. The mammoth attacked Glow Neos, but Jaden activated De-Fusion and split his monster back into Glow Moss and Neos.

Jaden looked at Jesse in surprise. "I thought you said you didn't really have any cards."

Jesse grinned. "I did. But I never said that I didn't have any cards at all. The Crystal Beasts are strong, but it helps to have a few back up spells and traps. I never know when I might need them."

Jaden nodded understandingly. "Makes sense."

Well, Jaden then activated Contact Soul and summoned Air Hummingbird, a red humonoid bird with big white wings. Like Glow Moss, Air Hummingbird was a Neo Space alien and was able to fuse with Neos in Contact Fusion. They created Air Neos. Air Neos attacked and defeated Saphire Pegasus. Saphire Pegasus reverted back to his crystal form right afterwards and Jesse put it back in his haversack.

It was Jesse's turn next and he activated Gem Release, equipping it to Amber Mammoth. Amber Mammoth and Air Neos battled each other. They looked equal in attack points (2500), but because Jaden had lost some lifepoints at the start of the duel, Air Neos' attack points increased and he was able to defeat Amber Mammoth. Amthyst Cat didn't seem to like this and she pounced at Jaden, striking with her claws and decreasing his lifepoints ever further.

Jaden called out Aqua Dolphin and then activated Neos Energy to make him stronger. Aqua Dolphin attacked Amthyst Cat, who tried to defend herself, but in the end, Aqua Dolphin won. Well, then Air Neos attacked Jesse directly, decreasing his lifepoints further. Jesse heard himself scream as his lifepoints went down. His legs gave out from under him and he fell backward.

"Jesse, are you okay?" Jaden cried, running over to his friend in concern.

Jesse nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"That's good," Jaden said. "You had me worried there for a second."

"Should we continue our duel?" Jesse then asked.

Jaden pondered on this for a minute. Normally, he would have said "yes" and they could have kept on dueling for hours until there was a winner. But this time, something was telling him that it wasn't such a good idea. The Crystal Beasts seemed different then other monsters as if they were real. He and Jesse could end up being seriously hurt if they kept playing.

"Actually, I think we should stop," Jaden decided.

"Oh, all right then," Jesse agreed, somewhat surprised.

"Besides, I think your cat is exhausted from doing all your summoning for you," Jaden added, pointing at Ruby.

Jesse looked at Ruby too, who was falling asleep by his feet. She glanced back at him with an apologetic expression as if she was sorry she couldn't continue his duel for him. Jesse smiled gently at her and stroked her around the ears.

"That's all right, girl," he told her. "Time to regenerate. You deserve it."

Ruby looked at him gratefully, giving a soft 'mew' sound of thanks. She turned back into her crystal form. Jesse then put Ruby's crystal, and Amber Mammoth's and Amthyst Cat's crystals away in his haversack.

"That was fun!" Jesse exclaimed suddenly, giving a broad grin.

"Sure was," Jaden agreed. "I really could've kept on going if it wasn't so late and we weren't so tired."

"I could have too. I wonder if who would've won?"

"Don't know. A duel is never over until the last play is made. Maybe we'll get the chance to continue this duel some other time." Jaden then gave a grin and added, "But I'm pretty sure I was winning."

Jesse smiled back and put a hand on Jaden's shoulder. "You can think that. But just imagine what could've happened if I'd managed to call out all of my Crystal Beasts at once."

Jaden tried to imagine it, but couldn't, so he said, " Nah, I think I'll wait and see for myself when it really does occur. It sounds like it'll be cool though."

Over by the doorway, Tory had been watching the whole duel and the after conversation. He really didn't like that Jaden was so friendly with Jesse. They were acting like they had been friends for a lot longer than just as few hours, and had just reunited with each other. The truth was that Tory was very jealous that Jaden and Jesse were turning into such good friends having only just met each other today. Tory had met Jaden as a kid when his parents had become servants at the castle. He and Jaden hadn't become friends until about three months later. In a way, Tory didn't know why he didn't like sharing Jaden with anybody else. He just felt that no one else could appreaciate Jaden as a friend like he could. And now this mysterious kid Jesse has come into the picture, and Jaden had made friends with him like there was nothing to worry about a stranger being pursued by demons. Tory decided that he had to find some way to keep them apart.

--

Well, there you are. Chapter 2 up and complete. (All the typos in Chapter 1 have also been corrected.) How was the duel this time? Better? I found it hard to write, because of Jesse's unusual way of summoning his monsters. So I made it hard to decide how Jaden should counter and what cards I should allow Jesse to have. I used the site Janime as reference for their "decks" and what the cards did. It's a great site with all kinds of info on the Japanese version on the series. Take a look if you have time. Haha, I sound like I'm doing an advertisement. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. This is more of an in-between chapter, leading into the events of Chapter 3. I have Chapter 3 all planned out, I just have to write it. So, it might be real soon. I hope. Well, read and review please, and I'll catch ya later. Ciao!


	3. Chapter 3

Hi all! Wow, this story has gotten more Story Alerts and Favourites. Thank you! I'm glad that you are liking it. And thanks to those who reviewed as well. It is always great to get your feedback. Speaking of which...

Shuwaii: Yes, Yubel will come up soon. I plan on having her appear in the story in about Chapter 6, but she will mentioned before that. And yes, Jaden will also have his share of being special in the story's events. See if you can catch the foreshadowing hint in this chapter.

Well, that being said, here is the next chapter. And sorry that I took so long.

--

Chapter 3 - In Trouble Again

Tory was starting to feel impatient. A couple of hours had passed and the duel had long since been over. Or so it seemed to Tory anyway. He wondered if he would ever get the chance to play with Jaden alone.

Jaden, however, was in no hurry to leave. The duel against the Crystal Beasts had been very exciting and he was interested in learning all about them. He had noticed that the Crystal Beasts could only appear on the field because of Ruby's red jewel. Maybe he had been right in thinking that the Crystal Beasts were real monsters. The monsters in the Dark World didn't only exist in cards others were physically real and could move around in the world. Some were good, while others were not, and did bad things to hurt people. Jaden thought back to the demons that had been after Jesse. They had been after the Rainbow Dragon. But it was still unclear why. When Jaden had tried to ask Jesse about the Rainbow Dragon, Jesse had not been really clear in his answer. Just what kind of power did it have? Jaden somehow knew that the answer lay in the Crystal Beasts and their connection to Jesse. Plus, there was also the fact that the Crystal Beasts might be real. Maybe the Rainbow Dragon was real too.

"Hey, Jaden, what's wrong?" Jesse asked. "You look like someone just rained on your parade."

His thoughts interrupted, Jaden jerked awake and nearly fell over. "Huh? What?" he cried out.

"What's wrong?" Jesse asked again.

"Oh, nothing," Jaden replied quickly.

Jesse glanced at his serious face. "I don't believe you," he said.

Jaden paused in thought for a minute and then said, "Jesse, are the Crystal Beasts real monsters?"

Tory perked up his attention at this.

Jesse grinned. "Well, sure, they are real. They're like my family." He seemed to think his last statement over and then added, "No wait. They _are_ my family."

"So, they are real, real like you and me?" Jaden questioned.

Jesse's grin faded slightly. "Of course. That's why they're in the form of crystals and why I need Ruby to summon them."

Jaden, sensing that this questions seemed to be pushing a little too far, gave a quick smile.

"Wow! That's pretty neat," he remarked.

Jesse nodded, relaxed, and returned the smile.

Tory had heard all he wanted to hear. The Crystal Beasts were real monsters and Jesse was connected to them. Right now, he didn't care that no one got hurt in the duel and that Jaden could take care of himself. As far as Tory was concerned, Jesse was a target for trouble, and Jaden had to be kept away from that trouble at all costs. He had to make Jesse leave.

"I knew there was something wrong about you!" Tory burst out, glaring at Jesse.

Jesse was taken aback and could only look at Tory in confusion.

"What are you taking about?" Jaden asked.

Tory turned to look at Jaden. "I told you so," he snapped. "I told you that they would take advantage of you."

Jaden frowned. "No one took advantage of me. They're my friends."

"We should have just stayed at the castle. You could have been hurt playing with this guy's monsters."

"I'm fine," Jaden insisted.

Tory ignored him and turned back to Jesse. "You didn't tell Jaden that you're monsters were real. It's no wonder that you were running form those demons. You bring trouble to the prince!"

"Tory, calm down!" Jaden cried, standing in between his two friends with his arms spread out. "That's enough! Stop accusing people!"

"You're the prince?" Jesse blurted out, staring at Jaden in surprise.

Jaden fell silent. He nodded.

Jesse's composure then all of a sudden changed. His voice became more serious, having a bit of a hard tone to it.

"Well, that changes everything," he said. "I didn't know I was facing the prince. Your friend's right. I should have told you about the Crystal Beasts. You could have been hurt and I am sorry. I'll take my leave now."

With that, Jesse turned to go, but Jaden grabbed his hand.

"Jesse, wait!" he cried. "It doesn't matter that I'm the prince! You're my friend and no one was hurt in our duel. It's all right, Jess, really."

Jesse let go a small smile. "Thanks Jaden. It was fun while it lasted. But I'm a wanderer after all and I have to wander."

And with that, he walked off. After he was gone, Jaden turned and frowned over at Tory.

"What was that all about?" he demanded.

Tory, secretly pleased that Jesse was gone, shrugged and said, "I don't know."

"You had no right to treat him like that," Jaden went on, seriously feeling the need to lecture Tory on his rudeness. "You are my best friend, but I am allowed to have other friends too. Friends are an important part of life and it's great to have more than one. I hope you can learn that someday."

Tory just frowned back, but didn't say anything. Indeed, Jaden was also in a bad mood. He was really cross at Tory, and that Tory didn't seem to feel any bit of remorse. Well, having nothing else to do, and not wanting to spoil any more of the day for the rest of his friends, Jaden decided to go home to the castle.

Awhile later, Jaden and Tory arrived back at the castle. Tory stomped off to sulk in the remote place of the dungeons. It was rather gloomy down there actually, but sometimes Tory didn't of the darkness of them. Being in the dark sometimes just has the perfect solitude when you are feeling down and want to be alone with your thoughts.

Jaden, meanwhile, went out for some solitude in the castle's one and only garden. There were not many places in the Dark World where flowers and trees could grow. There were, of course, forests spread around the Dark World, but they were no where near as pretty. The garden had flowers of all different colours. There was a kind of Weeping Willow in the center of the garden, with its vine-like branches reaching all the way down to the ground. It created a kind of leafy tent under them. Jaden often hid there when his room didn't provide the solitude he was looking for (or if he wanted to hide and avoid princely lessons and duties). He had shown Tory the garden once, but Tory couldn't seem to ever appreciate much of the outdoors. Jaden crawled into the Weeping Willow's leafy tent, and made a mental note to show it to Jesse, if the young wanderer ever came back someday.

Elsewhere, Jesse was walking through a forest. He had a walking stick thrust out in front him. The stick came in handy for more than just a walking tool. It also came in handy for scattering brush and cobwebs aside, and providing a bit of a warning to one about creatures hiding in the brush. If it was a strong piece of wood, it could also be used as a weapon in a pinch. Jesse had figured out his trick when he had just started wandering and had wound up in a swamp one day and had gotten lost. Zombies and all manner of creatures had seemed to be lurking everywhere in the swamp's thick fog, and swamp-weed kept on entangling his feet. Being as he was just a kid at the time, he had been quite scared of anything that moved in the fog. Out of all the things to use in one's defence when in trouble in the middle of nowhere, it seems that a stick is always around somewhere within reach. It had became a rather comfortable habit of his to do when he couldn't call on Ruby to keep him company, and he had to walk on alone.

As he pressed on, Jesse's thoughts turned to Jaden. He wondered what Jaden was doing. He felt bad that he hadn't told Jaden the truth about the Crystal Beasts. The Crystal Beasts were more than just monsters, they were real and very powerful. It was said that they were connected to the legendary Rainbow Dragon. Because of this, Jesse had started to become the target of evil monsters wherever he went, all wanting the to get their hands on the Rainbow Dragon. So, not wanting to involve anyone, Jesse had decided that it was best to travel alone.

Well, awhile later, Jesse reached the edge of the forest. It was really dark out now. Jesse glanced up at the meteor. He could see it in the distance, heading in a curved direction toward the northwest. The meteor rarely curved so he wondered what it could mean. But he didn't have time to think about the meteor. For as soon as he tossed his stick back into the forest undergrowth (now that he was out he thought he didn't need it), he was all of a sudden jumped upon by a dark cloaked creature. Jesse grabbed a rock that was conveniently laying near his free hand and managed to hit his attacker over the head with it. He pushed the unconscious creature off himself and got to his feet. Unfortunately, the one that attacked him didn't seem to be alone, and about seven or eight more came out of hiding from under the brush. They quickly surrounded him.

'Oh, crap,' Jesse thought, trying not to panic. 'Now what do I do? Sure wish I hadn't tossed away that stick.'

Jesse's first instinct was to find an opening in the group and then make a run for it. But the moment he tried this, one of the cloaked creatures hit him in the stomach with the blunt side of an axe and he doubled over in pain. Another creature kicked him sharply in the back, and Jesse felt all the air leave his lungs in a coughing gasp. He tried to force himself to stand, but was hit on the head and fell to the ground again.

"Careful!" a new nasty-sounding voice barked. "We were told to capture him and make the dragon appear. He is utterly useless to us if he is dead."

Jesse raised his head to see who had appeared. A tall vampire with long blonde hair had just come out of the forest.

"Doesn't mean we can't have some fun with him first," a hissy voice to Jesse's left said.

The vampire, obviously the leader of the strange group, looked down at Jesse. Jesse frowned definately at his attackers, and tried to push himself into a more comfortable position. But one of the creatures stepped forcefully on his back to keep him from rising.

"All right, have your way with him then," the vampire announced. He turned around, clearing not finding such a thing very interesting, and added, "But don't blame me if you get sent to the stars when we get back."

The cloaked creatures needed no second bidding, and they set upon Jesse with ferociousity. Jesse rolled up into a ball, clutching his hands over his hand as he was hit by continuous blows. Part of him knew that he should try and summon Ruby and one of the Crystal Beasts. They always protect him. But it seemed that that was what these creatures were after, and Jesse didn't want to expose them to danger.

Over up in a tree not far away, a winged little fuzzball was watching all that was going on. It seemed to recognize Jesse and wanted to help. But the little guy was rather weak in power and would probably be no help at all. It looked over in the direction of Jaden's castle, and coming to a quick decision, flew off in its direction.

Meanwhile, back at the castle, Jaden had left his secret place in the garden. He had decided to go and find Tory and see if they could work out some sort of an understanding. For some reason, Jaden often found that he couldn't stay mad at his friends for long. Tory, however, tended to hold a grudge. Jaden checked all the usual hideouts of his friend, but couldn't find him anywhere. He didn't think of looking in the dungeons. It was rumoured that a lot of terrible tortures happened to the really bad criminals down there; so ever since he was little, Jaden couldn't stand the sight of the place. After awhile, Jaden gave up on trying to find Tory.

A few minutes later, he entered his room and flopped backwards on the bed. It was dark outside now and he was very tired. He wanted nothing better to do than to go to sleep right then and there. He had no sooner gotten comfortable, when suddenly a rather stressed-looking little fuzzball collided with one of the windows. Jaden jumped up, ran to the window, and flung it open. The fuzzball fell inside, landing on top of his feet. Jaden picked it up and looked at it.

"Winged Kuriboh?!" he exclaimed in surprise. "Are you all right, little guy?"

Winged Kuriboh ignored him and started flying around in dizzying circles, chirping loudly. It didn't seem to think that this was the time to be worried over it. Jesse was in serious trouble. He needed help and fast.

"Whoa, slow down!" Jaden cried. "What's happening to Jesse? Where?"

Winged Kuriboh described in a frenzied rush what it had seen. Jaden's eyes went wide. He then realized that he had already wasted about five minutes in getting the story from Winged Kuriboh.

Soon, he was out in the courtyard and making a mad dash for the secret door in the west wall (there's one in both the east and west walls). He almost collided straight with a guard, but managed to avoid the guy and kept running.

"Your highness, where are you going?" the guard called.

"Nowhere! Gotta run!" Jaden called back in a rush.

"But your highness...!"

But Jaden hd already vanished from sight in the dark. He went out through the secret door and ran off in the direction of the westward forest.

It wasn't long before he reached the forest. As he ran along, he summoned out Aqua Dolphin and Flame-Wingman to help him. Winged Kuriboh was flying ahead of them, leading them tro Jesse's location. Jaden hoped that they wouldn't be too late.

"Jesse!" he yelled. "Jesse, where are you? Jesse!"

Back on the edge of the forest, the cloaked creatures had grown bored of their game of tormenting Jesse. Jesse was now lying on the ground, bloody and bruised. He was only semi-conscious that he hardly noticed them tying up his hands and feet with rope. Not that he could have escaped even if he tried. He could hardly move, let alone escape.

"Why are you doing this? What do you want with me?" Jesse asked, glancing wearily at his captors.

The vampire ignored him and turned to cloaked creatures. "All right. Take him away."

The cloaked creatures started to carry Jesse off. Jesse had given up trying to resist them and let them pull him forcefully to his feet. They hadn't gone far before Aqua Dolphin showed up and knocked out the two carrying Jesse with a couple of strong kicks. Jesse fell to the ground with a pained groan.

"What's going on?!" the vampire leader yelled.

Flame-Wingman came flying in behind Aqua Dolphin. He quickly knocked out three more creatures with a well-aimed firey blast. Jaden's voice then reached them, calling out Jesse's name. Jaden then appeared out of the forest, along with Winged Kuriboh, who was flying by his head. Jesse could hardly believe it.

"Jaden..." Jesse gasped. "It can't be..."

Jaden ran over to his friend and knelt down beside him. "Jesse, hold on! I'm here now. You're going to be all right."

"Oh, you think so, do you?" the vampire jeered. "This boy is coming with us."

"Says who?" Jaden argued.

The vampire frowned at him. "Says me. He is connected to the Rainbow Dragon, and we have orders to capture him."

He turned to the remaining cloaked creatures. "Come on! Grab him and let's get out of here!"

With some nasty hissing noises that made Jaden's skin crawl, the creatures grabbed Jesse by his feet and pulled. Jesse seemed to have gotten some of his strength back and he tried to kick his way loose. But a creature slashed out with some strong claws from under its cloak. Jesse gave a sharp cry of pain. Jaden scrambled to to reach his friend's hand, but felt himself struck across the back by the vampire's sword. Jesse was dragged off back into the forest, still trying to kick himself loose.

"Jesse, no!" Jaden shouted. "Let him go!"

But they had already disappeared into the dark, taking Jesse with them. Jaden got to his feet again, and turned to the vampire, who was just entering the forest.

"Hey! Don't think you're going to get away after torturing somebody!"

The vampire turned around to face Jaden. "That's the real world, kid," he said bluntly. "And what happened here is none of your business."

"You're wrong!" Jaden snapped. "That boy that those things just took happens to be a good friend of mine. Now, where are you and your creatures taking him?!"

The vampire's eyes then suddenly widened. Jaden had started to glow an strong orangish auroa under his anger. The vampire seemed to recognize the power.

"Your power...!" he cried in amazement. He smirked at Jaden, sniggering a little. "If that boy is your friend, then he might not be for long. You just might possess _his_ power, and everyone knows that _he _serves Yubel."

The orange auroa faded slightly then, and a confused look crossed Jaden's face.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded. "Who is _he_? And who is Yubel?"

The vampire ignored him, and just headed off into the forest after the creatures.

Jaden didn't much time to think about what the vampire had said; for just then, a blinding flash came from somewhere close to the north end of the forest.

"Jesse!" Jaden cried, remembering where the creatures had taken him.

Aqua Dolphin came over beside him. "I'm sorry that I couldn't stop them. But don't worry, I can still sense where they went. That light can serve as our point of direction, and I have great hearing."

Jaden just nodded. Another blinding flash, this time of many different colours, happened. Jaden and his monsters ran off in its direction. The light stayed as if the source of some mysterious power, and served as their guide.

A short while later, they reached the spot. What was happening there causes Jaden's mouth to drop open. The creatures were cowering under a tree. Jesse lay unconscious on the ground in front of them. They had obviously beat him senseless to stop his struggling. The crystals of the Crystal Beasts were all around Jesse in a circle and glowing brightly. The vampire was standing off to the right looked to be the only one who wasn't scared or in shock. There was another blinding flash that made Jaden cover his eyes. A second later, a huge shadow of a dragon appeared over Jesse. It roared and the cloaked creatures bolted off into the dark of the forest. Somewhere in the dark, Jaden could hear Aqua Dolphin and Flame-Wingman dealing with them. He looked uip again at the shadow of the dragon.

"Is that.. the Rainbow Dragon?" he stuttered out.

"The dragon... I've found it," the vampire said, giving a nasty grin. "Yubel will be pleased. I'd better go tell her that..."

He didn't get a chance to finish as Flame-Wingman showed up and hit him with a well-aimed strong blast from behind. He vanished in a flash of light. The dragon, seeming to sense that all the threats were gone, faded away. The crystals stopped glowing and landed on the ground around Jesse.

Jaden ran to his friend's side in concern. "Jesse! Are you okay?"

Jesse's eyes flicked open briefly to look at him. "Jaden... thank you..." And then he passed out again.

--

Oh my god, poor Jesse! I really had him get the worst of it. Having Jaden appear to his rescue was alot of fun. I originally planned on having Jaden show to the rescue after the shadow of the dragon appeared. But the review to about Jaden having a more active, special role, changed my mind. And I like out it turned out. Anyway, there we are Chapter 3 up and complete (and I have also corrected the typos in Chapter 2). I have started writing Chapter 4, and I hope to have it up real soon. Well, cya then!


	4. Chapter 4

Hi there! Well, I finally finished chapter 4. Finally! I discovered something when writing this chapter: starting a chapter and finishing it are two very different things. XD I'm sorry that I took so long in updating. I found one of my old projects of making Anime Plushies (I made a real cute one of Yugi) and just got distracted for a while. So, sorry about that. Oh, and thanks to those who reviewed. I am glad that you are enjoying the story. Speaking of which, I have a request for the future to Favouriters and such, could you please also leave a review? You don't have to of course. It just lets me know what you like about my story. Thanks! :)

Now that that's all settled, here's chapter 4.

--

Chapter 4 - Jesse

When Jesse awoke, he found himself in a comfortable bed. He sat up, wincing a little, and looked around. He was in a rather big room. The walls of the place were built with a kind of silvery-blue stone. The didn't have much in it, but the furniture that was there (which was the bed, a table/desk, and some chairs) looked to be made top-of-the-line.

Jesse wondered where he could be. He couldn't exactly afford to live in a place like this. The last thing he remembered was being captured by the vampire and those cloaked creatures, and then Jaden showing up to rescue him. Looking around the room again, he soon noticed Jaden lying under one of the three windows. Jaden had fashioned a kind of uncomfortable-looking bench under it out of three chairs. He lay there with one foot sticking through the back of a chair, the other sticking in the air on top of the chair, and a blanket half-lying on top of him and half-lying on the floor. Jesse smiled, trying not to laugh at Jaden's awkward sleeping position. He soon found himself falling asleep again as well. As soon as he was asleep, he started to dream.

In the dream, Jesse was running from something in the dark. It was so pitch black that he couldnt see a few feet in front of him, let alone where he was going. It was like he was blind, but could still tell that he had vision. The thing chasing him was fast. He couldn't see what it was in the dark, but he could hear the sound of wings. Whatever it was could fly. As he stumbled around, he began to see images flash before him of his past. He saw himself when he first got the Crystal Beasts. The next image was of his first encounter with the demon warriors of Yubel. Jesse chanced a glance behind him at the thing in the dark. Maybe it was another demon after the Rainbow Dragon. Jesse stopped running, wondering if he should just try and stand up to it. The thing came closer, and Jesse could make out the shadowy shape of a feminine-looking winged creature. Her eyes, which were each a different colour, burned through the dark at him He reached into his haversack for Ruby's crystal, but when he pulled it out, it was blackened over and looked like a regular rock. Jesse dropped it in horror. It tumbled to the ground and someone picked it up. The person seemed to be dressed in armour and had yellow piercing eyes. Jesse felt like he knew the guy but couldn't tell from where. But he suddenly knew who the female creature was. It was none other than the Demon Witch Yubel. Even if he couldn't see her in the dark, he knew it was her. She was the only one who was always accompanied by the man in the dark armour. Whatever courage Jesse had in him at the moment deserted him then, and he screamed and ran. The Rainbow Dragon must not fall into her hands. Jesse partly wished that he could call on the dragon to help him out, but he didn't know how. Suddenly he heard someone calling his name. It was Jaden! He ran toward the sound of Jaden's voice calling for him. But then his feet all of a sudden slipped out from him and he fell over.

Jesse sat up and looked around. He was back in the "well-furnished", and now really bright, room. For a moment, he didn't recognize anything from before he fell asleep. Where was he anyway? He then noticed Jaden standing beside him, holding on to some of the blankets. Jaden had tried to wake Jesse from his dream by shaking him and calling his name; but when that didn't work, he had settled for pulling on the blankets (which Jesse had gotten tangled in from thrashing around) and made Jesse fall over backward into the pillows.

Jaden smiled at him. "Good to see your finally awake," he said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"How long was I out for?" Jesse asked.

"A couple of days. Those creatures beat you up pretty bad."

Jesse then noticed that his wounds had been treated and bandaged up. Not only that, they seem to have been treated by a professional. He looked around the room again.

"So, where are we?" he then asked.

"In my room, at the castle."

Jesse blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"Yep," Jaden replied, grinning. 'It was hard convincing the King (my father) and the guards though. They just didn't want to believe that you were my friend, and were so convinced that you were some kind of theif."

Jesse chuckled. "A theif? Did I really look that suspicious?"

"No, not really. The guards just couldn't think of any other explanation of me running out in the night and returning a couple hours later carrying you. Luckily Miss Fona, one of our nurses, came along or I don't know what I would've done."

Jesse nodded and smiled. "Well, thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?" Jaden asked, confused.

"Because you saved me when those creatures dragged me away, didn't you?"

"Well, uh, actually..." Jaden began, but then stopped himself.

He had a bit of a debate with himself on whether or not to tell Jesse that it was really the timely appearence of the Rainbow Dragon's shadow that saved the day. If the shadow of the dragon hadn't appeared when it did, the cloaked creatures probably would have gotten away with capturing Jesse.

"It was the Rainbow Dragon, right?" Jesse inquired, smiling knowingly at Jaden.

Jaden blinked. "How did you know?"

Jesse shrugged. "I don't know. I just got this feeling that it was the Rainbow Dragon."

"Well, you're right," Jaden answered. "The crystals of your Crystal Beasts were spinning around you and this shadow of a dragon appeared over you. It was the neatest thing I ever saw!"

"What about the creatures and that vampire?" Jesse asked.

"Oh, don't worry about those creeps. Aqua Dolphin and Flame-Wingman dealt with them."

"See?" Jesse said, grinning. "I knew you had something to do with saving me."

"Yeah," Jaden agreed. "But I don't know if we couldn have saved you without the dragon."

"I guess you're right."

"By the way, Jesse," Jaden went on, "what did you mean by a feeling?"

Jesse thought for a second and then shrugged. "I'm not really sure. I just knew that it was the Rainbow Dragon, as if it told me that."

"Okay, now I really don't get it," Jaden remarked, scratching his head. "The Rainbow Dragon... is it real or just a legend?"

"Don't know," Jesse replied simply.

Jaden wondered if Jesse knew more about the Rainbow Dragon than he was letting on. Or maybe Jesse really didn't know if the Rainbow Dragon was real. Jaden was about to ask Jesse more about the dragon, but then Miss Fona (a thin, young woman with short red hair) came in and said that Jesse needed his rest, and that Jaden had to leave.

"You don't have to leave," Jesse protested. "It's your room."

Jaden smiled. "Not right now, it isn't."

He turned to the door and then paused. "Say, Jesse, about the Rainbow Dragon and the Crystal Beasts..."

"Out!" Miss Fona ordered, pointing gruffly toward the door.

"He can stay," Jesse interrupted. "I feel fine."

Miss Fona shook her head. "Well, you don't look fine and I say you need rest." She turned to Jaden again. "Out! Now!"

"It's all right, Jess," Jaden told him. "I'll go get us some breakfast."

With that, he left the room. As he closed the door behind him, he could hear Miss Fona telling Jesse to lie down and rest, and Jesse stubbornly insisting that he felt just fine.

Awhile later, Jaden arrived back with a tray of things to munch on. Miss Fona had left, and Jesse (despite his earlier protests) had fallen asleep. Jaden set the tray down on a small table that was near the bed, in the corner of the room.

He sat down in a chair and looked at Jesse. He was now even more curious about the Rainbow Dragon and the Crystal Beasts, and what connection they had with Jesse. In his mind, he counted up the information he had so far about it all. He knew that the Crystal Beasts were real and that Jesse needed Ruby to summon them (Jesse had told him that himself). Then there was the appearence of the Rainbow Dragon's shadow. Jesse had been in big trouble and the crystals had activated, causing the shadow of the dragon to show up. Did that mean that the Rainbow Dragon was call upon through the crystals? There were still so many unanswered questions. Why did just the dragon's shadow appear? And where was the real one? Jaden wondered what it looked like and what it's powers were. It sure would be something to behold.

"Hey, you're back!" he suddenly heard Jesse exclaim.

Startled out of his thoughts, Jaden jumped, recovered quickly, and then looked over at him. "And you're awake," he responded.

Jesse gave a playful frown. "I wasn't asleep. I was... thinking while resting my eyes."

Jaden laughed. "If you say so. C'mon, I brought breakfast."

So, for the next litte while, they just sat and ate the tray of food that Jaden had brought.

Jaden's thoughts drifted once again to that of the Rainbow Dragon and the Crystal Beasts, and what connection they had with Jesse. Where had he gotten them? And when? They seemed to be like Jesse's guardians. Jaden wanted to know more about them. They had definately caught his interest. But the questions he wanted to ask might pry too far into Jesse's personal life. When Jaden had questioned him about the Crystal Beasts before, Jesse had either gotten upset or had tried to avoid the question. The creatures that were after the Rainbow Dragon were getting more violent as well. There was also the looming threat of Yubel, whom all the creatures seemed to work for. Jaden didn't know who Yubel was, but she was after Jesse and the Rainbow Dragon for a reason, and Jaden wished that he knew what it was. Jesse seemed to get into trouble everywhere he went, and Jaden wanted to help his friend. But first, he decided he needed to get some answers as to what was going on.

"Jesse, can I ask you something?" Jaden inquired.

"Sure," Jesse replied, his mouth full of a half-burnt hashbrown. "What is it?"

"Could you tell me everything you know about the Rainbow Dragon and the Crystals Beasts, and their connection to you?"

Jesse stared at him. "Why do you want to know?"

"There are creatures after you and I want to know why," Jaden said, giving a serious frown. He relaxed slightly and added, "You've become a good friend of mine, Jess."

Jesse gave a small smile and sighed. "Oh, all right. I'll tell you. I've been thinking of telling you about the Crystals Beasts anyway."

"You were?"

Jesse nodded. "It's the least I can do after I didn't tell you they were real before our duel the other day."

He took a deep breath and then began his story.

"_Before I started wandering, I lived with my parents up north. We lived in a small town that humans shared with some monsters. It was mostly spellcasters that lived there. But one day, our town was attacked by demons. We thought they had come from the cliffs to the west, but they didn't look like any demons from this world. They were looking for something they thought was in our town. When they didn't find it, they burned our town to the ground. Everyone was killed in the blaze. But I somehow survived. I don't know how, but I think something protected me. _

_I started to wander around the world after that. I've never gone back. A couple years ago, I met this travelling merchant. He had long, sliver hair and said his name was Maximillion. He stopped me on the road and said that he had something for me. He gave me a cloth bag from the back of his cart. _

_"I have a feeling these belong with you," he said. _

_I looked inside the bag. There were seven crystals in it. I took one out and it glowed in my hand. _

_"They certainly are pretty, but there must be some mistake," I said. "These aren't mine." _

_"They have never glowed for anybody else that I've shown them to," Maximillion replied. "They are definately yours now." _

_And then he just drove away. That was how I got the Crystal Beasts. Although when I first got the crystals, I didn't know that to do with them. I once tried to sell them. But the crystals really did only glow for me. Nobody else wanted them then, so I just kept them and continued wandering. _

_Ruby was the first of the Crystal Beasts to appear before me. She came to me when I was lost in a dark forest one night. She slept by my shoulder all night. Saphire Pegasus was next. I had fallen off a cliff and he showed up and caught me. (He is alot of fun to ride on; you'll have to try it some time.) The Crystals Beasts kept me company on many lonely night when I was a young traveller. We became close really fast. They really are like my family to me. _

_I travelled with this boy once for awhile. He said his name was Jim. We became good friends. Unfortunately, word somehow got out to bad monsters that I had possession of the Crystal Beasts. It wasn't long after I met Jim that they started to come after us. The first few times that they appeared to attack us, we heard them coming and were able to get away. But one night, they ambushed us in the dark. And they were all demons that attacked us. Jim and I both tried to fight them off. When it became clear to Jim that the demons were after me and the Crystal Beasts, he said he would hold them off while I ran. I didn't want to leave him behind, but he forced me to run and created a rock wall between us. I never saw Jim again, so I suppose the demons killed him that night. _

_I've travelled alone ever since. I didn't want anyone else to die because of the danger that the Crystal Beasts and I might expose them to. Bad monsters continued to chase and attack me. It seemed that they were following me everywhere. The thing that they all had in common was that they were all of dark attribute and they were always demons. It was only recently that I found out that they were after me because they thought I had the Rainbow Dragon. I also found out then that they all work for Yubel. The Rainbow Dragon is said to have powers over all the worlds and can change time and space. I don't know why Yubel wants it or what she plans to do with it. Heck, I don't even know where the Rainbow Dragon is. I've looked for it many times myself, but I've never been able to find it." _

Jaden was in shock for a couple of minutes after Jesse's story. He suddenly became aware that his mouth was open and quickly closed it. Jesse had had such a difficult past. He had so many close to him die. Jaden was soon able to find his voice again.

"Wow, that's quite a story," he said.

He paused for a second and then asked, "So, are the Crystal Beasts connected to the Rainbow Dragon?"

"Well, it is rumoured that they are," Jesse answered. "They are powerful on their own and it is said that they are connected to legend."

"They did cause the shadow of the Rainbow Dragon to appear the other day, so maybe those rumours are true."

"You think so?"

Jaden shrugged. "Could be. You never know, right?"

Jesse pondered on this for a minute and then just nodded.

"Okay, I have one more question," Jaden went on. "Who is Yubel?"

"I don't really know," Jesse replied, his voice quieting a little. "I've never even seen her before myself. Apparently, Yubel has yet to physically appear in this world. It is said that she will appear out of the darkest heart. What I do know about her, is that she is a very powerful Demon Witch. Some people believe that she is from another world and will come one day and take over this one."

"Is that so?" Jaden questioned, his voice having a serious tone to it. "Well, if she does appear, we'll just have to stop her."

Jesse frowned. "It's not that simple. Yubel is a strong Demon Witch. She hasn't even physically appeared yet, but all the demons in this world have become loyal to her. And she has Supreme King Haou working for her. She is feared by alot of people."

Jaden fell silent at that. He thought back to what Jesse had told about his past. Jesse had exprienced first-hand many times the demons loyal to Yubel, who hasn't even appeared in this world yet. And in one day, Jaden had witnessed two attacks himself. And then there was this new mention of Supreme King Haou. Jaden didn't know who this person was, but something told him that the guy was someone to fear just as much as Yubel.

Jaden then looked over at Jesse. He suddenly could sense that this whole conversation had taken a tole on Jesse. There was a somber look in Jesse's emerald eyes that said that they boy had not really wanted to talk about his past. Jaden went over and patted Jesse on the shoulder encouragingly.

"Don't worry, Jess," he said, smiling. "I'll help you against Yubel and her demons. With the two of us working together, there's no way she'll get the Rainbow Dragon and accomplish her plans."

"But it's too dangerous," Jesse protested.

"I know. I've helped you out twice already remember?"

At this, Jesse nodded.

Jaden grinned. "See? Nothing to worry about." His grin softened to a gentle smile. "You don't have to do things alone anymore, Jesse. Friends help each other, so I say, I'm going to help you get through this."

Jesse sighed and then smiled back. "Thanks Jaden. I guess I can't say no to the prince."

"Good," Jaden said, nodding his head in satisfaction. "Now I see that we still have some of our breakfast left over, so I think we should eat it."

It was mostly just fruit that was left over. Jesse couldn't help but burst out laughing as Jaden immediately tucked in with a will into an apple, squirting juice everywhere. He smiled again and joined in enjoying the fruit. Maybe Jaden was right. Maybe it was time for Jesse to accept the help of a friend again. With a friend like Jaden, there might be chance after all against Yubel and everything would turn out all right.

--

Whew, there we go! Chaper 4 up and complete. Finally! XD (I also have gone back to the previous chapter and corrected all the spelling mistakes and typos that I missed.) This chapter is mostly a continuation/wrap-up from Chapter 3. I originally planned on posting up Chapters 3 and 4 at the same time, but I when I finished Chapter 3, I just plum forgot about it. I also just couldn't resist in doing a "recap chapter" of Jesse's past. Well, I hope you liked it. I don't know when I'll get around to doing chapter 5. I might get into doing more of my Anime Plushies project, so we'll just have to see. I hope that I won't be too long. Anyway, please reveiw after reading and I'll catch ya later. Ciao!


	5. Chapter 5

Hey there! I'm BACK! ^_^ I finally got around to doing Chapter 5. Thanks to those who favourited and reviewed. You guys are awesome. I really didn't expect this story to be so popular. ^_^ Speaking of which...

**Kurodarkness:** I actually didn't expect Jim to appear in this story either. I thought of calling Jesse's past friend Patrick, but the name Jim just seem to fit better for someone of Jesse's travelling companion.

**Shuuwai:** Haou for Yubel is pretty confusing, I agree. Technically the term Supreme King mean he rules over everything and everybody... I don't know how to explain this without giving away too much... But basically, Haou doesn't really serve Yubel. But out of all her "followers", in this story, he is the most loyal. You could think of it as they kind of rule the world together.

I hope that explain things and didn't give away too much. I wouldn't want to spoil the fun of what lies ahead. Anyway, here is the next chapter, and sorry that I took so long. Enjoy!

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Chapter 5 - Unwelcome?

It was about a week or so later that Jesse was fully recovered from his injuries. Jaden had been the only one (besides Miss Fona the nurse) to see Jesse during his recovery time. He still had to leave often to do his prince studies with the royal teachers during the week. Instead of going to the village, he would hang out with Jesse. They would often discuss duel strategies or think up ways to try and confront Yubel. One of Jaden's ideas was to question people about the legend about Yubel, and ask if they know anyone with an extremely dark heart with an evil demon-lady following them around. But Jesse had pointed out that there might not be too many people willing to answer questions about Yubel because she is so feared. There was also the possibility that she might have not even physically appeared in this world yet, and just asking about her could stir up unwanted trouble. Jaden had had to agree on this (even if he didn't fully understand all of it). Even if some of the discussions were serious, Jaden enjoyed his time with Jesse alot.

The castle staff didn't think much of it. Basically because they didn't know about Jesse yet. But Jaden was already well-known for not caring much about lessons and sneaking off elsewhere. Even the guards and the King forgot about the unknown boy Jaden had brought to the castle a week earlier. Life went on as usual; except for the fact that Jaden didn't sneak off to the village much anymore, which the King saw as an improvement. Tory, who was the only one who really knew about Jaden's escapades outside the castle anyway, wasn't totally fooled. He and Jaden had made up about three days after the day of adventure in and around the east village. Tory had given in a bit reluctantly, apologizing for his temper, after much sulking in the dungeons. Because he and Jaden were friends again, Tory was the first to become suspicious about Jaden's new sneaking around. He tried to find out who or what was the new source of the most of Jaden's attention throughout the week, but to no avail. Jaden knew quite a few of the secret passages entwined throughout the castle to avoid being followed (or getting caught) if he really tried. Jaden had shown Tory a few of them but never the whole course of the network (especially the ones near his room).

Because no one really knew what was going on with Jaden, several rumours started to fly around the castle about what he was up to. His teachers insisted that he no longer went to the village because he was finally focusing on his lessons and would go off and study even more in private. Some of the female servants thought he had a secret commoner girlfriend, and would sneak off to see her because he was afraid of what people would think. A few of the guards wondered if Jaden was still going to the village, but had just found a way out that nobody was aware of. Tory hated a lot of the rumours, particularly the ones that mentioned someone else getting Jaden's attention. When Jaden heard about the rumours, he was angered too, and thought that they sounded ridiculous. When Jaden Jesse about the rumours, Jesse didn't seem to really mind. In fact, he thought the whole thing was very funny. He often teased Jaden about the girlfriend rumour when Jaden came to see him over the course of the week.

"Aren't you going to see your girlfriend today?"

"But I don't have a girlfriend," Jaden would argue back.

"Are you sure?" Jesse'd reply. "What about Alexis? You seem to like her."

Jaden's face would turn red at this. "Alexis is just a friend who happens to be a girl."

"Then how come your face is all red?"

Whenever Jesse brought up this, Jaden would chuck a pillow at him. "Don't you start spreading rumours too!"

And Jesse would just laugh, pretty much ending that type of conversation every time because Jaden would stomp away to the window right afterwards.

Jesse also thought it funny that the rumours were not even close to what was really going on. Only he and Miss Fona knew that Jaden would be coming to see him every day after his lessons and duties were over. They were no extra bits of studying, and Jaden kept insisting that he didn't have a girlfriend. The one of him sneaking off to the village through an alternate route was probably the only rumour that didn't sound completely ridiculous. But, of course, not one was accurate. Indeed, Jaden also thought this was funny, and couldn't wait to see what people's reactions would be when Jesse was finally alllowed to walk around the castle. Jesse had been insisting by the middle of the week that he felt fine and was fully recovered from his injuries at the beating from the cloaked creatures. But Miss Fona made him stay in bed for the rest of the week, just to make sure. Jesse wondered if he would be stiff and have trouble walking because he'd been laying down so much. Jaden didn't think it'd be a problem, but said he would help if such a thing happened. But just to make sure, after Miss Fona would leave, Jaden and Jesse would do stretches and races around the room.

Well, at the end of the week, Jesse was finally allowed to leave the room and walk around the castle. Jesse was really glad about this. Although, he found it nerve-wracking that stares and suspicious looks seemed to follow him everywhere. Alot of people wanted to know who the prince's new companion was and where he had come from. Jaden insisted on giving Jesse the castle grand tour. Jesse liked this idea, but not so much because he felt that he must avoid getting into trouble around here, or there will be consequences. He was a outside commoner in the castle after all. But he tried to assure himself that there was nothing to worry about because he was with Jaden.

They had already done the courtyard (where Jaden had shown Jesse the secret side doors), the library, and the building where the guards train. Jesse hadn't really liked it there much. For the most part, the guards _were_nice to him (it might have had something to with the presence of Jaden, the prince) and he had been allowed to try a sword. But some of the other guards had looked at with suspicion or that he was trespassing somewhere he shouldn't. Jaden hadn't really noticed. He was too concerned about what others thought of his friendship with Jesse.

The next place Jaden showed Jesse was the Grand Hall. He explained on the way that the Hall was mostly used for meetings or banquets. Jaden didn't really like sitting in on the meetings (he had to as one of his duties as prince) because he found them boring. Jesse remarked that it was amusing that Jaden was the prince and yet dislike alot of the duties that a prince had to do. Jaden agreed that this did seem funny.

Soon, they reached the Grand Hall. Jaden opened the doors, motioned Jesse inside, and then headed in behind him. Jesse was in awe at the size of the Hall. It was huge with big windows all along the right wall and behind the throne. There were eight pillars, four on each side, lined in silver and reaching all the way up to the ceiling. A couple of funny-looking stone chandeliers hung in a row in the center of the ceiling. Jesse looked down at the floor, which looked to be made of marble, and could almost see his reflection in it.

"Wow!" he exclaimed. "This place is amazing."

"Yeah, it is impressive," Jaden agreed.

He admired his reflection on the floor too, and suddenly noticed that there seemed to be a smudge across his reflection's nose. "But I don't think the cleaning servants would like it if they saw us trekking dirt across this newly polished floor."

"You think so?" Jesse asked, somewhat nervous.

"Let's just say they take pride in their work," Jaden answered. He then noticed Jesse's expression and asked, "But hey, what's wrong?"

Jesse shrugged. "Nothing. I just want to avoid getting trouble while I'm in your castle. There's suspicions of me enough as it is."

Jaden gave a broad smile. "Oh, is that all? Well, don't worry. I have a solution."

"You do?"

"Sure. Check this out."

Jaden then went up to the dias and picked up the King's scepter that was leaning against the throne. He waved around like was commanding an important event.

"All right, everyone," he called, "let the tournament to see who can clean the fastest commence. Start your mops!"

Jesse laughed. "Jaden, are you sure you're allowed to be fooling around with that?"

Jaden gave a serious frown. "Of course. I'm the prince, remember? And just for that, I order you to clean this Hall from one end to the other!"

"What? But this Hall is huge. It'd take forever."

"No complaints. Now get to it!"

"That's unfair, your highness," Jesse said, folding his arms across his chest in defiance. He was catching on to Jaden's game and suddenly didn't feel as bad. "I have done nothing wrong."

Jaden thought this over. He grinned. "You're right. Therefore, I have decided that it's only fair that I do the cleaning instead as punishment for my lack of judgement."

Jesse tried to hide the smile that was creeping up onto his face. "Actually, your highness, it was me who started it. So, as your friend, I've decided that I'll help you. But since this Hall is already spotless, I think it's best if forget all about it."

Jaden grinned again and put the scepter back against the throne. "Sounds good to me."

He came back down off the dias and over to Jesse. "So, feeling better now?" he asked.

Jesse nodded and smiled. "Yeah. Thanks. You know, you're quite good at that whole ordering thing."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," a new voice said.

Jaden and Jesse looked over at the sound of the voice. A man entered from the one of the side door to the right of the throne. He was dressed in silvery-blue tunic with dark blue pants, and had light brown hair and brown eyes. He also had a clearly seen gold crown on his head. It was the King! He walked over to them, flanked by two council members and four guards.

The King looked sternly at Jaden. "If you're going to order a punishment on someone, do it right. Stick to your order with strong authority. You gave in much too quickly."

"But I wasn't actually going to punish him for anything," Jaden replied, frowning.

"Then what were you doing?"

"He was trying to cheer me up. I was nervous from all the suspicious looks I keep getting. It was just a game," Jesse explained.

"Is that so?" a guard questioned, giving Jesse a sharp look. "What have you done that people are suspicious of you?"

Jesse shrugged. "Nothing."

The guards didn't seem to believe this.

"I haven't see a person like you around here before," another guard said. "You're not one of the servant."

"Looks like you and this boy have some explaining to do, your highness," one of the council members said, giving Jaden a stern look.

Jaden rolled his eyes. "I tried to explain everything on the night I brought him here. I told the guards and the King that Jesse is my friend, but they stubbornly believed he was a thief. Have you forgotten?"

"It seem we have," the King put in. "Refresh our memories. Who is this Jesse?"

Jaden gave a frustrated sigh. He didn't really like to repeat things. He frowned over at Jesse, giving a look that said Jesse should just have left the talking to Jaden.

"Now you've done it," Jaden mouthed to him. "They'll never give us break."

"Sorry," Jesse mouthed back, looking down at his feet.

Jaden put a hand on Jesse's shoulder encouragingly. Jesse looked back up at him. He still had a frown on his face, but Jesse could see the reassuring smile behind Jaden's brown eyes. He relaxed.

Jaden faced the guards. "Actually, I have an idea. Instead of me explaining everything to just you, let me explain to everyone. That way, maybe we can settle all these rumours and suspicions about my friend. Can you get everyone in the castle to come here?"

"I advise against this, your majesty," the first council member said to the King. "We should keep this among us."

Before the King could say anything, Jaden grumbled loudly, "Just do it!"

Well, about ten minutes later, the Great Hall was packed with people. The Hall was big enough to fit most of them in it, but several late-comers (mostly servants) had to stand at the back of the room and outside, watching from the doorway. The council member were watching from the side by the right door. Jaden, Jesse, and the King were up on the dais, the King sitting in his throne.

Everyone wondered what the prince wanted to say that he had asked for everyone in the castle to gather together. The last time Jaden had wanted to address everyone about a matter was when Tory had first come to the castle with his mom. Alot of suspicions were thrown around about them too. Jaden had finally stepped in and cleared that they were just a family wanting work. They had been granted that.

Alot of people were now looking up at Jesse and muttering among themselves. Jaden could see Tory standing among those close to the front. Tory was frowning up at Jaden and Jesse and muttering something that sounded like, "I should have known." Jaden came up to the front of the dias, Jesse following behind him. The room started to fall silent.

"Jaden, are you sure about this?" Jesse asked nervously.

Jaden shook his head briefly, feeling nervous too. "Nope."

He picked up the King's scepter and waved it. The room finally went quiet.

"All right, I've asked you all here so to clear up some rumours that have been flying around recently. These rumours started from my going off somewhere after my lessons were over. The thing about rumours is that they are often not true. I was seeing a good friend of mine, who has just arrived at the castle a week ago."

Jaden pointed over to Jesse. Jesse tried to put on a friendly smile and waved. A few people smiled and waved back. Tory and the guards, however, frowned in displeasure, not liking any of this.

Tory, now that he knew who Jaden had been spending his time with all week, was very angry. He hated to see that Jesse was back. He decided to have a talk with Jaden about it all later.

"This is Jesse," Jaden went on in a clear voice. "He is a wanderer that I met in a village east of here. He has been through some hard times. I've recently saved him when he was attacked by a bad group of monsters the other night in the west woods. And he has just recovered from his injuries. Jesse is my friend and I except him to be treated as such."

The room was silent for awhile after that. Some people were taken aback by Jaden's serious, no-nonsense speech. A few of them started muttering among themselves again. They were still unsure about the mysterious commoner that Prince Jaden had befriended. In the front row, Tory grumbled something as he glared at Jesse and then just left. The King then eventually stood up, signalling that the meeting was over, and people started to leave.

Jaden smiled in relief. "Thank goodness that's settled."

Jesse nodded. "Yeah. But I don't think you convinced them very well, Jaden. Some still seem to think I'm suspicious."

"Really?"

Jesse nodded again and jerked his head over to the right corner of the room. The King, the two council members, and a few guards were conversing in low tones by the door.

"That wasn't very informative," a council member was saying. "The boys seem to be hiding something."

"Yes," agreed the other. "Such as that whole business of being attacked by monsters. This Jesse seems to be a target for trouble and we have no idea were he came from. Your majesty, I don't think it would be wise to allow Jesse to remain in the castle."

"I agree," put in a guard. "If we cannot get him to leave the castle because of the prince, then let's find a way to throw him in the dungeon before he brings any trouble."

The King thought this over for a minute, and then frowned. "Well, no one asked what you thought. So far, for the time has been here, Jesse hasn't brought or caused any trouble. Frankly, I don't trust my son's commoner friends either, but we don't have any proof of anything, and I will not toss an innocent person in the dungeon for no reason. We'll just have to watch him closely in case something does happen."

The guards and the council members didn't seem like this idea. They opened their mouths, looking to burst out angry protests, only to think better of it and bow in submissive agreement.

"They don't seem to like me too much, do they?" Jesse remarked, hiding a grin.

Jaden shrugged and gave a gentle smile. "Don't worry. They're suspicious of everybody (even me). Some of them aren't really so bad. Most of the guards will get used to you after about a month, or forget about you and not really care either way. The council members and the King's guards tend to be harder to convince though. It took me close to three months to get them convinced that Tory was my friend."

"Really? Well, I hope it doesn't take them that long to welcome me."

Jaden grinned. "Well, even if they don't... you're not unwelcome here as far as I'm concerned."

Jesse grinned back. "Thanks Jaden!"

They heard the side door close as the King, the two council members, and the guards finally left the room. Jaden headed off toward the big doors at the front end of the Hall. Jesse ran after him.

"C'mon!" Jaden called. "Today's events have made me hungry. What do you say, next, I show you the kichen?"

Jesse's stomach grumbled, and he laughed. "Sounds like a plan. Let's go."

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And I think I'll leave it there for today. Really, I found this chapter kind of lame. It's mostly just a filler chapter, trying build more of the dislike toward Jesse (poor guy)... as well as have some fun before the serious stuff to come. I promise it will get more exciting in Chapter 6. Well, I hope you still enjoyed this chapter and will come back to read more. Don't forget to review and I'll catch ya later. Ciao! =)


	6. Chapter 6

Hi there! Happy New Year to you all! I had meant to put up a chapter before Christmas, but it has just gotten so busy. Oh well. At least I'm doing it now, right? XD And thanks to those who favourited and reviewed. I really appreciate your feedback, so thanks a bunch.

**DMG44: **Yeah, the messing around with the scepter was a little weird. I actually took it out several times, but kept ending up putting it back in because I found it so funny, that I just couldn't bring myself to erase it. ^_^

**Daku-Darkness316: **Haou won't be appearing in the story for a little while yet. The plan is to have him show up after a main confrontation with Yubel, who will be appearing soon. Haou sure is popular for being so evil, but no, he won't be appearing until the middle of the story (possibly around chapter 12). We'll see...

Well, anyway, without too much delay, here is the next chapter.

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Chapter 6 - Darkness in the Heart

Tory hadn't liked to see that Jesse was back at all. He had been a little curious as to why Jaden would want to call the whole castle together. The moment he saw why, a frown seemed to permanently plaster itself across his face. That Jaden hadn't told anybody about his secret friend all week, Tory found very irritating. He should have guessed that that was who was getting all of Jaden's attention the past while. When he saw Jesse standing up on the dias, Tory thought he should have been so obvious. He didn't take his eyes off them throughout the short meeting.

When it was over, Tory wondered why Jaden hadn't mentioned the Crystal Beasts. Jaden had only mentioned that Jesse had been attacked (after he had left from the east village) and that Jaden had saved him and brought him back to the castle afterwards. It didn't take Tory more than a minute to figure out that Jesse had been attacked because he had the Crystal Beasts. He already knew that the Crystal Beasts were real monsters and that Jesse was a target for trouble because he possessed them. Why couldn't Jaden realize that it was dangerous to hang around with Jesse? Just what did he see in Jesse anyway that he wa going to such lengths to help him? The more he thought about it, the more he could feel the anger and jealousy building with him. Tory remembered how Jaden had helped him out in a similiar way when he had first come to the castle a few years ago. It was ever since then that he and Jaden had been best friends. Tory had been so grateful for what Jaden had done for him, standing up to the King and the guards, that it was then that he had reached the conclusion that only he could appreciate Jaden as a friend. Had Jaden forgotten? Tory decided that he had to have a talk with Jaden, and get him to see some sense.

Glaring up at Jesse, Tory stomped away. He waited outside the Hall for Jaden to come out, so he could ask to have a talk with him. Jaden and Jesse soon came out of the Hall together, laughing and joking about how most of their conversations seemed to end on the subject of food. They headed off in the direction of the kitchen. Tory paused for a minute, frowning, and then followed after them.

A short while later, Jaden and Jesse arrived down in the kitchen. The cooks were busy making the meal for dinner. The delicous smells wafting around the room caused Jesse's mouth to start watering. Jaden noticed and couldn't resist a laugh.

"Starving, huh?"

Jesse nodded. "Very."

Jaden called out to one of the cooks, a young boy a few years older than he was. The boy was helping to make some kind of pudding. He turned around and smiled at them.

"Oh, your highness... are you here to beg for more food?" he asked.

Jaden frowned. "Do you have to put it like that? It makes me sound like a pest."

The boy chuckled. "Heh, sorry."

"That's all right. So, what have you got that we can munch on?"

Before the boy could answer, the head cook came up to them. The head cook was a rather plump woman with frizzy brown hair and a strict wrinkled face. She walked over to them, beating a messy wooden spoon against her palm.

"We've got nothing for you," she snapped. "This is all for the dinner. It'll be ready soon, so just wait like everyone else."

Jaden gave a playful frown. "Aw c'mon," he whined. "We're starving. Have a heart."

The head cook's expression softened at that. She consented to let them have a few veggies. Jesse was amazed that some people seemed to easily give in and relax at Jaden's smile and playful energy. He thought about how strict and mean the head cook had looked a minute ago, and how Jaden had easily gotten her to soften. It was like he had a power to sooth the savage beast and be friends with them.

Well, as they were enjoying their snack, Tory came by the kitchen. He could clearly see Jaden and Jesse sitting at a rough wooden table through the doorway. Jesse was commenting on how Jaden's goofy, playful energy sooth the savage beast. They both looked over at the head cook, who seemed to have her mean strictness back as she bossed the other workers around. Jaden shrugged and said that it just came naturally. Jesse smiled and said it was a very special gift to have. Tory could feel the jealousy coming into his heart again as he watched them. He grit his teeth together, trying to push back the strong desire to just storm in there and pull Jaden away. Just then, the boy helper came out to see what Tory wanted.

"Can I help you?"

"I just want to talk to Jaden," Tory said grouchily.

The boy was a little surprised at the harsh sound in Tory's voice. He shrugged and went in to get Jaden.

'Tory's here and wants to talk to you," the boy told Jaden. "I think you'd better go. He looks pretty mad."

Jaden sighed and nodded. He wondered what Tory wanted to talk about. Although, part of him seemed to already have a pretty good idea. He came out of the kitchen, putting on a friendly face.

"Hey Tory," he greeted, "what's up?"

Toy ignored the cheerful question. He pointed gruffly in the kitchen at Jesse. "What is _he _doing here?"

Jaden gave an annoyed frown. "Didn't I just explain why he's here? You were at the group meeting earlier. I saw you there."

"You're right. I was there," Tory agreed. He frowned seriously and added, "And you weren't that very informative. You didn't mention the Crystal Beasts. I know that's why he was attacked."

"That's exactly why I didn't mention them. There are bad monsters after Jesse and the Crystal Beasts. And half the castle guards are Fiends. I can't just tell everybody about the Crystal Beasts and their power, without knowing who to trust with that information. It's too risky."

"Then, why is he still here?" Tory demanded. "He's a target for trouble!"

"I gave my word that I'd help him through this," Jaden answered. "I can't just back out now after saying something like that. I won't!"

"But what about everyone else in the castle?" Tory argued back. "They deserve to know that we could come under attack by these bad monsters. As long as he's here, you're endangering everyone else in the castle!"

"Jesse is my friend."

"Aren't I your friend too? I hardly every see you anymore, since you spend all your time with him. It's not fair, Jaden!"

Jaden's expression softened slightly. "Is that what this is all about? Your just jealous?"

Tory glowered at him. " 'Just jealous'?! Of course I'm jealous! Ever since you helped me and my family out when we first got here, I've been grateful for our friendship. I understand you more than anyone else. But then he comes along, and all of a sudden, you're risking you're life when he's in trouble, and he's the only one who can make you smile!"

"Well, you aren't exactly making a friendship between you and me very easy right now."

Tory gritted his teeth together, trying to fight against punching Jaden in the face. His hands clenched at his sides, but remained there.

"I know that our friendship is faltering. But you really like him the most, don't you? He's important to you."

Jaden didn't know what to say to that. He looked down at his feet, trying to think of a good response.

"But look," Tory went on seriously, "I still care about the people in this castle, even if you don't. If you won't tell them about the Crystal Beasts, and the danger that they and your friend bring here, then I will."

Jaden's head snapped back up, his eyes having a furious glare. "Don't you dare!!"

From in the kitchen, Jesse heard Jaden's angered shout. He came out to see what was the matter. Tory and Jaden were locked in what looked to be a heated staring contest. Both of them had their hands in tight fists at their sides, as they glared at each other. Jesse looked from one to the other, a look of concern on his face.

"Jaden, are you okay?"

Jaden didn't hear or notice Jesse at first. He was too angry. It was only after he took a deep breath that he was able to calm down.

"Jesse? Yeah, I'm okay."

"Are you sure?"

Jaden nodded, giving a quick reassuring smile. "Positive."

Jesse wasn't convinced. He stared at Jaden, his eyes still full of concern. "I don't believe you. Something's bothering you, Jay, I can tell. What happened?"

"Mind your own business!" Tory snapped at Jesse.

Jaden smiled again, trying to reassure Jesse. "Tory and I got into an argument and he said something that ticked me off. That's all."

Jesse was still concerned about what happened to get Jaden angry like that. But he decided not to press the matter further right now. He gave a breif nod in understanding.

"All right then," Jaden said, suddenly perking up, " I know it's almost nighttime (meaning the light from the meteor isn't as bright), but how about I quickly show you the garden?"

Jesse liked the sound of that, and he smiled back. "Sure. Let's go!"

Tory watched the two friends go off. His eyes were full of a strong dislike toward Jesse. He could feel his heart hardening over just the thought that Jesse would be remaining in the castle. He could tell that he was close when he had said that Jaden cared for Jesse alot, and that Jesse could easily make Jaden smile. That Jaden was showing Jesse the garden right now bugged Tory just as much. Although he didn't really care much for the outdoors, when Jaden had first shown Tory the garden, Tory had thought it was like their secret hideout and that no one else could share. He decided to test a little more to see where Jaden's devoted friendship lied.

The next day, Tory met up with Jaden and Jesse in the courtyard. They were going to go and hang out in the village. Jaden offered for Tory to come along, but Tory declined. Hadn't Jaden ever heard of three's a crowd? So, Jaden and Jesse headed off to the village without him.

Tory sat sulking on the main front steps all day. Didn't Jaden like to hang out and play with him anymore? Jesse just seemed to be getting all of the young prince's attention. He tried not to think about what they were doing at the village. It only angered him more. He debated several times with himself on whether or not he should follow them. But eventually he decided against it. He just sat there on the steps, fuming all day. Once a female servant had happened by and asked him what was the matter. Tory glared at her and told her to mind her own business. A bit surprised at his rude tone, she shrugged and said that if whatever it was bugged him that much, then he should do something about it, instead of sulking. Tory thought this over for awhile after she left. As soon as they came back, he would do another test.

Well, at the end of the day, Jaden and Jesse came back to the castle. Tory noticed that Jesse had Ruby on his shoulder and that she looked a little tired. So, they had dueled each other again. Tory grumbled at the thought of it. He walked over and asked if he could have a talk with Jesse. Jesse was surprised, but agreed.

"Okay, look you," Tory snapped at him, once they were away from Jaden.

"My name is Jesse," Jesse interjected.

"Whatever," Tory said, glowering. "Look, I know you have the Crystal Beasts and that they are actually real monsters. Jaden told me that there bad monsters after you because you've got them. Don't you think that you are endangering the lives of the other people in the castle if you stay here?"

Jesse thought this over. "Maybe," he agreed. "But Jaden said that he'd help me fight against them. And I know for a fact, that he won't let anything happen to the people."

Tory smirked a little, trying to taunt him. "I've already told Jaden that I might tell everyone about the Crystal Beasts and the trouble that you and those things bring."

"Is that what ticked him off yesterday?"

Tory nodded. "Yeah. He was pretty upset when I threatened to expose your powers."

Jesse's expression hardened. "You shouldn't mess with things you don't understand."

Tory glared back. "You only arrived here a few weeks ago, so I don't expect you to care about the people in this castle."

"I do care," Jesse said seriously. "Jaden and I will work together to protect everyone, including you. He won't let anything bad happen. I know it. He's not like that."

"You think you know everything about Jaden?" Tory spat through gritted teeth. "Back off, wanderer! I've been friends with Jaden alot longer than you. He's my best friend, got it?!"

Jesse was taken aback by Tory's outburst. So, it wasn't just about the safety of the people in the castle from the danger that the Crystal Beasts seemed to bring everywhere he brought them. Tory cared about Jaden alot and his jealousy toward Jaden's other friends made him think he had to turn it into a competition. Jesse sighed. Why couldn't they all just be friends together? Jesse could tell that this was Jaden was hoping for. That Jaden had invited Tory to come with them to village proved that he hoped that they could find some way for them all to get along. Jesse wondered if right now, he understood Jaden more than Tory did. The competition over Jaden's attention seemed to have blinded Tory with jealousy and hate, so that he couldn't focus on what friendship was truly supposed to be.

A ways away, Jaden sensed that some kind of tension was building between his two friends. Tory looked about ready to punch Jesse out cold. Did he just enjoy being angry all the time? Jesse didn't look that happy either. Jaden could tell that whatever Tory had wanted to talk about it was turning into an argument. Or would soon break out into one. Jaden walked over to them, hoping to clear things up.

"Is everything all right?" he asked, when he joined them.

Jesse was deep in thought over something and didn't hear him at first. He was startled out it, letting out a quick gasp of surprise, when Jaden touched his shoulder. He gave a brief nod, trying to indicate that he was okay. Ruby shot a low hiss at Tory.

"Okay, now it's my turn to say 'I don't believe you.' " Jaden said.

When Jesse didn't respond, he glanced over at Tory with a disapproving look. "Just what did you say to him, Tory?"

Tory shrugged. "Nothing that I didn't already say to you."

"He warned me that it's dangerous for me to remain here with the Crystal Beasts," Jesse explained quietly. "That the people could get hurt if the bad guys come to attack. He said I should tell the people about the Crystal Beasts, so that they are warned." He paused, his expression concerned. "Should I tell them?"

"Well, they'd probaly be in more danger if we told them about the Crystal Beasts. Yubel and her demons might go after them as well because they could tell her information. And it be really no good if you leave as she'll probably find you faster. You won't be able to fend them off by yourself forever. Sooner or later, they will catch you and that'll serve no one. You're better off staying here where we can work together."

Jesse stared in shock for a second at Jaden's words. Then he smiled and nodded. "You're right. Thanks Jaden."

Jaden smiled back. "Don't mention it. Now how about we go to my room and work out some strategies?"

"Sure!"

After they left, Tory stayed there awhile longer. He didn't like the way the conversation had progressed at all. With it, he had discovered that Jesse could easily make Jaden smile when he was upset, and that Jaden could do the same for Jesse. It worked both ways. Of course, that's what being a friend meant. But Tory just saw it that he had lost another round of the competition for Jaden's attention. Jaden and Jesse's bond of friendship had grown strong, and in such a short time at that. Tory wished that there was some way to break them apart for good.

"Well, that won't happen until you act." a voice in his head said.

Tory jumped. "Who's there?" he cried out.

"I am of the darkness in your heart," the voice answered. "And your heart has grown very dark indeed from the jealousy you feel. Your hatred toward Jaden and the young wanderer's friendship has hardened your heart, enough for me to appear from the darkness."

Tory frowned. "What the heck does that mean?!"

"Never mind that right now. We both want the same thing, which is Jaden. Let us work together."

"How do we do that?"

"I'll set up another test for you, and you can see where Jaden's heart lies."

The voice got a bit a croon to it, that Tory wondered if it had a face would it be smirking. Tory found it kind of weird that he was listening to a voice in his head. Either he was desperate enough to cooperate with the darkness, or he was just going crazy. But it didn't freak him out as much as he thought it would, so he decided to wait and see what the creature of the darkness had in mind.

A couple days later, Jaden and Jesse were going to go and hang out in the village again. They had apparently promised Alexis that they would come and take part in a mini-tournament that she wanted to arrange. Tory met up with them at the east secret door. He pulled Jaden aside and asked if Jaden could play alone with him later. Jesse heard them and suggested that Jaden play Tory; he could stay in the room. So, Jaden agreed that they could hang out together that night. Everything settled, Jaden and Jesse headed off to the village, while Tory remained behind again.

Well, that night, Jaden and Tory got together in Tory's room to play. Tory was kind of stuck on what they could do.

"If you get out your cards I could show you a few strategies," Jaden suggested. "Then maybe next time there's a tournament in the village, you can come with us."

Tory didn't really like the sound of "us" and the whole thing of playing together, but he also thought that he needed to get better at dueling. And that Jaden was here, alone, to teach him was an excellent opportunity. So, he agreed.

"Okay, sounds like fun," he said.

Jaden grinned. "Good. So, first, let's work out that your all your cards are in harmony with the rest of your deck."

"What's that mean?"

'It means that you can't just stick some cards with other cards just because you think they're cool," Jaden explained. "Some cards connect their powers with other cards, and you have to the think about how it connects to your strategy."

Tory nodded. "I get it. I think."

Jaden laughed and went on to show Tory some good dueling strategies that he could use to get the full benefit from his cards.

Meanwhile, over in Jaden's room, Jesse was also busying himself with planning out duel strategies. Ruby was laying next to him at his feet. It felt boring waiting by himself, but he tried to make the best of it.

About an hour later, the room suddenly went very dark. Jesse gromped around in the darkness, trying to find a candle or something to light. Ruby hissed at something in the dark under one of the windows. Jesse turned to look at what had got her attention, and saw some kind of thick shadow slinking across the floor. The shadow rose up, taking on the gooey form of some kind of demon. The slit of a mouth appeared on where its face should have been. It spoke in a voice that made Jesse's skin crawl.

"The Crystal Beasts... The Rainbow Dragon... Hand them over. They will create a new world in this desolate land."

"No!" Jesse cried, trying to compose himself. "You can't have them!"

"We have come for you," the shadow muttered.

With that, more shadows slunk into the room. They surrounded and jumped on Jesse with the silent strength that was the darkness. Jesse tried to struggle, but it felt like he couldn't breathe. The shadows were trying to suffocate him. The darkness of the physcial shadows spread over him like a blanket. Jesse gromped around with his free hand trying to find his haversack to summon Sapphire Pegasus. The light from Sapphire Pegasus's horn would fend off the these dark creatures. But then suddenly, the last bit of his body and vision was covered by the shadows' dark mass. Jesse let out a terrified scream.

Back in Tory's room, Jaden heard the scream.

"What the heck was that?!" he yelled, jumping up.

Tory shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe one of the boy servants played a prank on one of the girls and it freaked them out. C'mon Jaden, back to my dueling lesson. You were showing me the sigificance of paying attention to face down trap cards."

Jaden was still on his feet alert. "That did not sound like the scream of some harmless prank. Someone's in trouble."

"Let the guards handle it," Tory grumbled, irritated.

Just then, Ruby burst into the room in a flurry, colliding straight with Jaden's ankles. She recovered herself quicikly, and started to pull at Jaden's pant leg. Jaden suddenly knew who it was that was in trouble and had made the scream.

"Jesse!"

Tory cursed quietly to himself and growled, "Him again?!"

"I have to go," Jaden said urgently. "He's in big trouble, I know it."

"Can't those Crystal Beasts save him or something? It's my turn to have you."

"Ruby wouldn't have come if that were the case."

With that, Jaden dashed out the door. He stuck his head back in breifly and added, "I'll be back. Stay here." And then he was gone.

Tory gave an irritated growl. He started to tear apart his cards, trying to find a way to vent out his anger. He didn't really hear what Jaden had said before he had run out the door. All he knew was that Jaden's attention once again went to Jesse. Tory could feel the darkness in his heart growing again. He now knew where Jaden's devoted friendship lied. There was no more need for tests.

"Now do you see?" the voice in his head asked.

Tory nodded, his expression hardening. "Yes. What was it that you did?"

"I sent some shadow demons to attack his friend. He really must be important to Jaden for him to speed off to the rescue like that. And he didn't even notice you then, did he? Not exactly what a friend would do."

"So, just who are you?" Tory then asked, frowning

The figure of a winged female demon then started to form in Tory's head. She smirked at him, her voice having an amused tone.

"I am what I appear to be," she replied. "I am a creature of darkness. I feed off the darkness of the heart. And your heart is the darkest that I've seen."

"I meant your name."

She laughed, clearly enjoying toying with him. "I am Yubel."

The moment she said her name, Tory felt as if his whole being went dark. He cried out, but found that there was nothing he could do or say. The whole room went black, and then lit up again a second later to reveal not Tory in its center, but the Demon Witch Yubel.

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And there we'll leave it for today. I tried to focus on mostly Tory for this chapter, so that I could build the darkness in his heart to a full peak. I hope I did all right with it. And Yubel finally appears, Whoa! Creepy. Well, give me your feedback, tell me what you think, and I'll see you later. Ciao! ^_^


	7. Chapter 7

Hi there! Man, long time no update. Is it really already the month of June?! O.O I've really been out it. I'm sorry I took so long. I got caught up in watching some Anime shows on-line (Romeo x Juliet is awesome!), finishing my on-line writing course, and then there was Anime North. Plus, of all things, I was hit by a spell of writer's block. For the life of me I couldn't figure out how to make Yubel physically appear in the Dark World in order to progress the story. I finally decided that the only way to do it would be to rewrite the end of Chapter 6. And then that became another problem on how to do that. Geez, I really to have stop with the excuses! _ So, anyway, I am really sorry that I took so long in doing a new chapter.

I hope that you still enjoy it. And thanks to those who favourited and/or reviewed. You guys are awesome, and I really do appreaciate it. Well, anyway, it seems I've rambled enough. On with the latest chapter! Enjoy! ^_^

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Chapter 7 - Enter Yubel

Jaden soon arrived at his room and flung open the door. He had followed Ruby all the way there at a mad dash. It was pitch black in the room. Jaden couldn't even see his feet. He plucked a torch off the wall in the hall and ventured into the room.

"Jesse?" he called. "Are you in here? Are you okay? Call out to me!"

There was no response. Jaden waved the torch around, trying to find something to indicate what had happened. But the light from the torch was rather dim and he couldn't see much. As he was wandering almost blindly through the dark, he suddenly felt himself collide with what was probably his table. He doubled over, temporarily winded. Ruby, who was watching from the doorway, then hissed at something close to the center of the room. Her eyes had this urgency in them. Jaden flashed the torch in the direction she was looking at. It was a big black gooey mass and it looked to be sucking the strength from something.

"Ugh!!" Jaden cried in disgusted shock. "What is that?!"

The shadow demons rose up off of their prey and looked over at Jaden. Their prey gave a faint moan. It was Jesse! The leader of the shadows opened its slit mouth to speak. The sound made Jaden cringe and take a step back.

"Leave. This does not concern you."

"Yes it does," Jaden shot back, composing himself and glaring at the creatures. "That boy there happens to be an important friend of mine. Now let him go!"

The shadow demon leader smirked at him. "Can't do that. I've almost figured out the whereabouts of the Rainbow Dragon."

"What?!"

The shadow demons' dark mass engulfed over Jesse again. Jesse gave a weak muffled scream. It probably wouldn't be long before he ceased breathing altogether.

The leader spoke again. "His heart is extremely well protected. The essence of the Crystal Beasts guard its most secret depths from the darkness. But they can't do it forever. Just a little bit further and I'll have the answer."

"Stop! Leave him alone!" Jaden yelled.

He quickly summoned Neos. Neos tried to punch the shadow demons off Jesse, but the shadows' gooey forms absorbed most of his strikes. Jaden grit his teeth together in frustration.

'Damn! This isn't working. I need another plan and fast!'

The shadow demon leader soon sensed that he almost had the information he wanted. The other shadow demons gradually retreated off their prey. Jesse moved slightly and turned partially blank eyes to look up at Jaden.

"Jaden... is that you?"

"Jesse!" Jaden cried in relief. "Yeah, it's me. Are you going to be all right?"

"Yeah, I... think so," Jesse answered through forced coughs. "Get these... things... off me."

Jaden smiled slightly, which then changed to a frown as he thought, 'How?'

Light is what usually beats back the darkness. Glow Moss might work, but its light was really a soft hue. He'd need somthing brighter. Jesse then gave a sharp pained gasp. Jaden could tell he was running out of time and gave a frustrated growl. He had to think of something quickly. There must be some card in his deck that could push back this suffocating darkness and its creatures. Glow.. But what would glow bright enough? Ruby moved from her spot by the door, glaring at him and giving an impatient hiss. She jerked her head at the shadow demons as if telling him that he was taking much too long. Then to his horror, Jaden noticed Jesse had gone limp and cursed to himself. How could protect Jesse from Yubel and her demons if he spent this long trying to think up a plan when it counted? The red jewel on Rubys' tail then suddenly glowed and a blue crystal floated into Jaden's hands.

'Sapphire Pegasus? She wants me to summon him? All right then."

Jaden raised the crystal up and yelled," I summon Sapphire Pegasus!"

The crystal flashed and Sapphire Pegasus appeared above them close to the ceiling. Sapphire Pegasus threw back his head, and the light from his horn shined forth. The shadow demons shrieked and retreated off of Jesse, fleeing through the open window.

The leader paused and looked back at them. "You may have won this time, but next time you won't be so lucky. I now know where the Rainbow Dragon resides. Soon, Yubel will appear in this world and a new era will begin."

"What does that mean?" Jaden demanded.

But the leader had already gone.

Jaden then ran to Jesse's side. He pulled him close, his eyes full of concern. Sapphire Pegasus landed next to them and looked at Jesse too. Ruby joined them and gave Jaden an irritated look. Jaden knew why she was upset. He had taken so long in fending off the shadow demons. What if it was like that against Yubel? He felt a panic rising in his heart at the thought and tried to push it to the back for the moment.

Jaden gave his friend a shake. "Come on, Jesse, wake up... Look at me!"

Neos came up and put a hand on Jaden's shoulder. "It's all right. He's been drained of a lot of energy, but he's only unconscious. He should be okay with some rest."

Jaden nodded and slightly relaxed. "So, what were those things anyway?" he asked.

"Shadow demons," Sapphire Pegasus replied. "They're made of pure darkness and are one of the most feared assassins in the Dark World. From the sound of things, they are working for Yubel. But just what did they want here?"

"Their leader said he had found the whereabouts of the Rainbow Dragon, and that Yubel will soon appear in this world. And something about a new era beginning."

"Well, if he meant what I think he meant," Sapphire Pegasus said, his tone serious, "then we're in trouble."

Jaden wondered what he meant by that. Then he was all of a sudden hit by a bonk of realization. The person with the darkest heart must have been found.

Meanwhile, Tory was trying to come to some kind of understanding as to what had happened when Yubel had said her name. It was like his body had been torn apart as he and Yubel had switched places. He was floating next to her now like he was a ghost or was unconscious but somehow still awake. Yubel, now physically in the room, was ignoring him as she appeared to be waiting for something or someone. Tory then suddenly had the bad feeling that Yubel had had no intention of working together from the beginning.

"Hey, what just happened?" Tory blurted out. "I thought we were going to work together."

Yubel shot a sideways glance at him and then she nodded. "Yes, I did say that we would. And we already have worked together."

Tory blinked. "We have? Since when?"

"Since I was able to physically appear in this room. I am from the darkness in your heart. I existed in your heart, and the darker your heart grew from your jealousy and hate, the more I came into existence. I gathered enough of your darkness for me to appear in my physical body. Your part in our little agreement has been fulfilled. I have no more use for you."

"But what about working togeter to have Jaden?"

Yubel gave a slight smirk. "Since a long time ago, Jaden already belongs to me. His true self is loyal to me and its to me that he'll belong to for eternity. I won't let anyone else have him!"

"Well, I hate to break this to you," Tory said, suddenly confident, "but Jaden's attention right now goes to Jesse. Jaden won't be yours or mine as long as Jesse is around."

"I notice you are now saying the wanderer's name. Do you like him now?"

Tory shook his head, frowning. "No, I still hate him, and I want him gone. You said you sent some shadow demons to attack him, and shadow demons are one of the most feared assassins in the Dark World. Were you planning to kill him?"

"No," Yubel answered, her voice serious. "I had no doubt that Jaden would go and successfully save him. I have plans for Jesse, and he is of no use to me if he is dead."

"What plans?" Tory asked, becoming suspicious. "Jaden can't be yours as long as Jesse is alive. I've seen so myself. Jesse has become too important to Jaden for him to lose."

Yubel laughed slightly. "You no longer hate him as much as you think you do. Must be because I've taken the darkness in your heart to fuel my body." She took a deep breath and composed herself. "I need Jesse alive. He has a power that can grant a wish of mine."

"What power? The Crystal Beasts?"

Yubel ignored him and turned her attention to the window as the room suddenly went very dark. Then the window flung open and the shadow demon leader slunk into the room. Tory jumped as it stood erect and spoke to Yubel.

"Milady, I have discovered the whereabouts of the Rainbow Dragon. It's deep in the boy's heart. It is extremely well protected by the essence of the Crystal Beasts."

Yubel nodded understandingly. "You did well. Now that we know its whereabouts, my plan can finally move forward."

"The Rainbow Dragon?" Tory interrupted. "What's that? Is that why you need Jesse alive? What are you planning?"

Yubel glared at him, annoyed. "Why are you still here? I said I have no further use for you. Begone!"

Tory cried out in fear and surprise as he was suddenly pulled away by an unseen force. It was like a vortex had opened behind him but remained invisible, and the more he struggled to remain in some sense of the world, the worse the pull got. Yubel had her back to him and looked to be in no way going to change her mind. Tory knew for sure then that she had betrayed him. She wanted Jaden all to herself and he was in the way. Then his senses and body went black, and he vanished.

Yubel smiled to herself. "It won't be long now... Jaden."

Over in his room, Jaden all of a sudden went tense as he got the strange feeling that someone very powerful was calling him. Through the strange link, he could sense that someone wanted him very strongly and it made uneasy. Jaden shivered, wondering who it could be. Then in his mind, an image of Tory appeared. Tory screamed and vanished, being replaced by a winged female demon. Jaden had the feeling that he knew her. She turned and smiled at him, saying the words "It won't be long." Jaden then heard himself cry out as he jerked awake. He must have fallen asleep.

Neos looked over at him from where he was leaning against the wall. "Are you okay?"

Jaden nodded, still a bit shaken. "Yeah. But I have a bad feeling that Yubel has appeared from the darkest heart. I think I know who's it is, and if I'm right, it could be all my fault."

"What do you mean?" Sapphire Pegasus asked, from over where he was standing next to Jesse.

Ruby was lying next to Jesse as well, lounging by his feet. She was still pretty upset with Jaden over what happened earlier and was ignoring him.

"My friend Tory," Jaden replied. "He has gotten considerably more jealous of my friendships with others since I met Jesse."

"Jealousy is one of the key emotions that feeds the darkness," Sapphire Pegasus agreed.

Jaden nodded understandingly. "At any rate," he went on, "I did tell Tory that I'd go back after I helped Jesse, so maybe it's best if I go and check."

"I'll go with you..." a quiet voice offered.

Jaden jumped in shock, before he realized that it was Jesse, who had just woken up. He smiled in relief at seeing that his friend was awake and okay, but he shook his head sternly.

"No, you should stay here. If I'm right about Yubel then you'll be safer here with Sapphire Pegasus. I'll go with Neos and check on Tory."

Jesse tried to push himself into a sitting position, but Ruby laid herself down on his stomach to prevent it. He patted her gently on the head to reassure her that he felt all right, and she reluctantly moved. Jesse then sat up and looked at Jaden.

"But I'd be worried about you facing Yubel on your own. If she and her demons are here, I've dealt with them before. I could help you."

Jaden frowned. "Jesse, you just had your life energy almost completely drained. Stay here. I'll be back, I promise."

Jesse just nodded, knowing that Jaden was probably right. With that, Jaden left room along with Neos, giving a reassuring smile on the way out. He hadn't been gone long, before he suddenly came back in again, muttering to himself and thinking his last statement over.

"On second thought," he said, his expression serious, "maybe you should come. Every time I let you out of my sight, something always attacks."

Jesse chuckled, but found it painful, so he stopped. "That's true."

Jaden gave a sigh. "I still have a bad feeling about this, but I suppse I'll feel better if I can keep an eye on you. Let's take Sapphire Pegasus though."

Jesse agreed that this was a good idea. Sapphire Pegasus laid down next to him, and Jesse (with a bit of difficulty) clambered up onto his back. Jaden handed Jesse his haversack for a just-in-case measure, and Ruby hissed at him. Jesse was surprised and stared at her, wondering what he could have missed that got her so mad. Jaden simply said that he would explain later. Ruby then silently climbed into the haversack, watching things through the flap. Jaden gave a smile to try and reassure everyone (as well as himself) about what they were doing, before leading the way out the door and off to Tory's room.

They soon arrived Tory's room and Jaden was surpised to find that the door was locked. The uneasy feeling growing stronger, he tried to compose himself and banged sharply on the door.

"Hey Tory," he called, "are you still in there? I'm back!"

There was no response from his friend. Jaden wondered what had occured and that maybe his dream was true and Yubel was the cause. But why? What did she want? He banged on the door again, and to his surprise, it opened. He glanced back at Jesse, who smiled confidently at him. Together, they entered the room. Inside, they found not Tory, but the winged female demon.

She turned to face them, her eyes widening in surprised pleasure at the sight of Jaden. "Jaden..." She regained her herself quickly, her expression becoming serious. "Do you know who I am?"

Jaden nodded. "You're Yubel, the Demon Witch. The one in chrage of all the Demons in the Dark World and who wants the power of the Rainbow Dragon"

Yubel smiled, pleased that he knew her name. "Correct. And do you know why I want the power of the Rainbow Dragon?"

"To make a new world that suits you."

Yubel stared at him intensely. "Right again. But that's not the only reason."

Jaden looked back at her, before he started to find her stare unnerving and had to look away. Instead, he glanced over at Jesse and Sapphire Pegasus, trying to distract himself. But suddenly, he wished he hadn't as Yubel then noticed Jesse too. Jaden and Jesse both watched her, trying to keep their expressions calm and serious.

"Well, it's the wanderer with the dragon's power," she said, smirking slightly. "I knew you'd be able to save him from my shadow demons, Jaden."

"So, it _was_ you who sent them."

Yubel nodded. "Yes. I needed to find out the whereabouts of the Rainbow Dragon, and now I know. It is deep within your heart, dear Jesse."

Jaden glared at her, standing in front of Jesse protectively. "I won't let you take my friend or the dragon!"

Yubel smirked again. "Relax. I won't be taking Jesse tonight." She turned away toward the window. "But shouldn't you also be concerned about your friend Tory?"

Jaden's eyes widened at that. "What do you mean? What have you done?!"

"Nothing. Tory choose his own fate."

"Where is Tory?" Jaden demanded.

Yubel ignored the question and instead said, "You'll be mine soon, Jaden."

With that, she headed off to the window. Then she suddenly turned around again and whispered in Jaden's ear so that only he could hear: "Maybe it's time for you to consider who's really most important to you."

And then she was gone, leaving Jaden confused and wondering what she meant.

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Whew! And there you have it. Chapter 7 done and complete. I tried to wrap things up from the last chapter, which seemed to go a lot easier after I did the rewrite. I like Yubel's last line in this chapter. I hope things will go smoother now with no writer's block spells, now that I'm heading towards some of the main action. Well, review, tell me what you think, and I'll catch ya later, ^_^


	8. Chapter 8

Hey, long time no see! ^^; Year 2010 and 15 months since I last put up a chapter! _ Urk, I can feel your stares. I am so dreadfully sorry! Just so you know, I haven't given up on this fic by any means. I refuse! I don't want this fic to die. Only, now that Yugioh GX is over, it's getting difficult to keep everyone in character. I keep having to watch episodes over again. I'm not sure I did okay with this chapter, but you can judge for yourselves. Just a point, I did try to write since last June, but nothing really came. Funny thing is, I knew what I wanted to happen in this chapter, but writing it out became not so easy. I lost my drive to write or something, because I couldn't write much of anything for the life of me. So, I distracted myself instead. ^^;; At Christmas, I designed and sewed my own Anime plush-dolls for family and friends and that took a long time. Then I got into watching the Japanese versions of Yugioh GX and Megaman NT Warrior. You never really realize how much is changed until you see both versions. ^_^ Well, thank you so much for being so patient. It can't be easy waiting for chapters from a silly procrastinator like me.

Anyway, on we go! Here is the latest chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 8 - Too Little, Too Late

Tory was gone, and Jaden felt that it was all his fault. If he had only realized that Tory was the one with the darkest heart sooner, this would not have happened. Yubel would not have appeared and the world would not be in danger.

Jaden was at a loss on what to do next. He wanted to go and look for Tory, to bring him back safely, but he didn't want to leave Jesse alone. Yubel would come back. If not her, then one of her demons. They would come back for the Rainbow Dragon for sure, now that they knew where it resides. He couldn't leave Jesse unprotected anymore. So far, he had been luckily in saving him at the last minute, but worried about the next time. He had promised to help Jesse fight Yubel. But now the Crystals Beasts' trust in him (particularly Ruby's) had been broken after the attack by the shadow demons. Jesse's recovery of life energy was slow. He spent a lot of time sleeping, and Jaden could do nothing but sit and watch. Ruby wouldn't let him do anything else, laying at Jesse's side and glaring at Jaden all the time. Jaden was quite surprised that she could hold such a grudge. He had already lost Tory to the darkness, he didn't want to lose Jesse too.

'I couldn't protect Tory from being swallowed by the darkness, so the least I can do is protect you.'

A few days later, Jesse had recovered much of his life energy. He felt a lot stronger, and could finally stand up and walk. Jaden was happy to see that his friend had come out of that last attack pretty much all right. Another thing that had been restored was Jesse's voice and eye-sight. He wouldn't stop talking from the moment Jaden would come to see him, whether it was new battle strategies to confront Yubel or just random conversation in general. He was quick to notice that Ruby was still angry with Jaden, and didn't know what to do to fix it.

"I don't understand, " Jesse said, one morning. He really wanted to know what happened to get Ruby so ticked off. "Just what happened to make her so mad at you?"

Jaden sighed. "It's my fault. I took too long saving you from the shadow demons with the light from Sapphire Pegasus's horn. And I only knew to use Sapphire Pegasus because Ruby showed me. You lost most of your life energy because I didn't react fast enough. You can't really blame the Crystals Beasts for being angry when their job is to protect you. I said I would, and I couldn't."

"Oh." Jesse was at a loss for words for a second and then he smiled. "But you tried, right? And you did save me, even if Ruby helped. My energy is almost back, and soon I'll be able to help fight Yubel together like we promised. I don't blame you."

"Thanks, Jess, " Jaden said, smiling slightly. "But try and convince your Beasts of our promise the next time you're in trouble and I get there at the last minute."

"Jaden, would you stop blaming yourself!" Jesse grumbled. He glanced over at Ruby, who was resting at the foot of the bed. "You're my friend and I trust you… and so should they."

Jaden just nodded and then said, "Alexis and Syrus are supposed to be joining us at the castle today. I told them what happened and they wanted to help."

Jesse knew that Jaden was just trying to change the subject, but decided not to push it. He could tell that Jaden still felt bad about losing Tory to the darkness, not being able to effectively protect anyone with his own power. He wished he knew how to cheer his friend up. Maybe hanging out with Syrus and Alexis for a while would do the trick.

Awhile later, they met up with Alexis and Syrus by the East Gate. The guards almost didn't let them in, and Jaden was getting annoyed with how the guards were always suspicious of those less fortunate. Alexis managed to convince them that they had come looking for jobs. With Tory gone, the castle was short a servant at the moment, so they were allowed in.

They headed off to the garden for their planning session. Not too many people went there so they could plan strategies in private. It was known fact that the next time they encountered Yubel, they would mostly likely have to fight her. Jesse wanted to be a part of the main attack force, but being as it was him and the Crystal Beasts that they were going to be protecting, Jaden wasn't sure if this was a good idea.

"I don't want to sit and do nothing, while you guys do all the fighting for me," Jesse protested.

"We don't mind," Alexis said, trying to assure him. "If Yubel gets her hands on you and the Crystal Beasts, it will be a disaster for this world, right? We'll keep you safe."

Jesse frowned. "You are involved because I brought this mess here. The least I can do is help everyone fight!"

"But you don't want to expose the Crystal Beasts to danger, right?" Jaden reminded him, giving a quick smile. "That's why you're always hesitating to summon them when you're in trouble."

At this, Jesse nodded. "You're right. Even though the Crystal Beasts are supposed to protect me from anything, I have been hesitant to summon them when the demons come. Yubel wants us because of the Rainbow Dragon, which according to legend, the Crystal Beasts are connected to."

"See? And now that we know the Rainbow Dragon is inside your heart, that's all the more reason you shouldn't fight."

"But if the Rainbow Dragon is in Jesse's heart, isn't that another defence against Yubel?" Syrus questioned.

Jaden shook his head. "No. The way Yubel talked about it, it sounds like she already has found a way to call forth the Dragon. It'd would be no good to assume that alls protected while it's Jesse's heart."

"Even so," Jesse interrupted, "I still want to fight. I won't hesitate anymore. If trouble comes, I will use the Crystal Beasts to battle with you! Trust me!"

Jaden looked over at Jesse, his eyes full of concern. "But Jess…"

Jesse smiled back at him. "You don't have to worry. I promise."

Jaden was at a loss on what to say to that. The determined look in Jesse's emerald eyes told him that it was pointless to argue. Instead, he just sighed and nodded.

For the next couple of hours, they tried to think up some good strategies. Unfortunately, for all the planning they were doing, it wasn't really getting them much of anywhere. It was getting to be quite frustrating trying to think up something to use against Yubel, when they were unsure what demons she would send to attack them next. And this made Jaden uneasy. Alexis suggested that they just fight Darkness with Light, which seemed logical, but Jaden pointed out that the shadow demons that attacked Jesse last time were of pure darkness and that using Light isn't always the case. Syrus thought that they should tell the King and the people now about Yubel. If she was going to attack the castle soon, they should all prepared so innocent lives would not be taken. Jaden remembered that Tory had mentioned the same thing, but he still didn't agree. He still wasn't sure if he could trust them with the information about Jesse, the Crystal Beasts, and now the Rainbow Dragon and Yubel. They might kick Jesse out of the castle so the people wouldn't be in danger; after all, he was only a stranger to them. Plus, there was no guarantee that the King and the people would believe them anyway.

Sometime later, as they were leaving the garden, Jaden noticed Tory's mother (a rather plump woman) looking behind some barrels and things desperately. He was quick to notice the extreme worried look in her eyes. Jaden froze, realizing that she must be looking for Tory. How do you explain to a mother that her son was swallowed by the darkness and that it may be all your fault? Jaden wasn't at all sure how to explain, so he avoided her, hurrying after Jesse and up to his room.

Seeing Tory's mother so worried only reminded Jaden of his little dilemma. He wanted to find Tory. Tory was Jaden's first friend in the castle, since back when he had first come looking for work. And Tory did have his good points (although he was stubborn in not letting it show too often). One time this little boy had been playing a hit game with a stick and some pebbles. But a stray stone had crashed through a castle window, and a guard had tried to lock the boy in the dungeon. But Tory had intervened and said that it was all his fault because he had wanted to try but the pebble had got away from him. Tory had gone two days with hard chores after that, but Jaden had been proud of him anyway. Really, that Tory was so selfish in keeping Jaden's friendship for himself, was his only really bad point because it made him mean. Jaden really did want to bring his friend back, but Jesse had become very important to him as well and he just couldn't leave him unprotected and alone.

When Jaden's mood didn't improve at all the next day, Jesse was worried about him. Jaden's smile was one of his best traits, so if finding Tory would make Jaden happy again, Jesse decided that he would let him go. That night, he worked up some nerve to bring up the subject.

"Jaden, if you want to find Tory, you should go."

Jaden blinked and stared at him. Jesse had decided that it was best to just get straight to the point, rather than try to bring it up casually.

"But Jess," Jaden protested, a little flustered. "I don't want to leave you unprotected either. I promised that I would help you against Yubel, and I almost failed already to stop them twice. Your Crystal Beasts are mad at me because of it."

Jesse frowned and argued back, "And I promised that the next time the demons attack, I wouldn't hesitate to call the Crystal Beasts for aid. I can fight! You don't have to worry, okay?"

Jaden fell silent, thinking he had pushed a nerve.

Jesse relaxed and grinned at him. "Besides, you'll be of no use to anyone when you're worrying about Tory all the time. And Alexis and Syrus are here to help now too. So, you can go look for information on Tory, and we can hold things down here."

"But…"

"No buts, my friend. You go. Should anything happen, I'll send Cobalt Eagle to get you. He's pretty fast."

"No, I'll leave Winged Kuriboh here. He may be small, but he's quite speedy."

Jesse smiled. And Jaden then burst out laughing, realizing that he had just agreed to go.

"Okay, okay, you've talked me into it."

"Yubel's army is known as the Dark Army, and this guy known as Zure is the main leader of the group. It's not certain or anything, but you could try questioning him about Tory," Jesse suggested.

"Got it," Jaden responded. "And you promised, remember?"

"Yeah, I know."

So, the following day, Jaden set out to find Zure's fortress. He brought with him, just a bit of food and his deck. The only problem was he had really no idea where to start looking. There were several other places where members of the Dark Army were said to reside. Now that he was a good league away from the castle, Jaden realized that it probably would have been a good idea to bring along a map. It's not like he could ask for directions to some scary guy's house from regular people. They would probably be too nervous to talk about those under Yubel. Rumour had it that Zure's fortress was to the South, so Jaden decided that that was better than nothing.

A few hours later, after keeping up a continuous pace south, he soon came upon a small town. The town was just a bit larger than the east village, maybe by about 50 homes or so. Wandering around, he found a bench where he could sit and eat. As he was resting, this strange lady came up to him. She had a crystal ball tucked under her arm.

"You are looking for the leader of the Dark Army, are you not?"

Jaden stared at her for a second, and then nodded. "That's right. But how did you know that?"

The lady shrugged. "Never mind. The one you are looking for is in castle south-west from here. However, getting what you want may not be so easy."

"Huh?" Jaden said, confused.

Before he could ask her to be more clearer, she was gone.

'Why is it most people tend to talk to me in riddles?' Jaden wondered, annoyed.

Nonetheless, he decided to give it a try. Sure, it might be a trap, but right now he had no other leads.

The castle turned out easier to find than he expected. It really was just south-west from the town, backing on to a wood. The castle was of medium size, and had three turrets. Jaden suspected that Zure must be in the tallest one in the middle. Why bad guys always felt more powerful the higher up they were, he could never really figure out. Maybe it just gave them something to brag about in making their opponent huff to the top. Jaden went and knocked on the door. To his surprise, it was unlocked and just opened.

Aqua Dolphin then suddenly summoned himself into being beside him. "This feels like it might be a trap. Be careful."

Jaden nodded and then ventured into the castle.

"I've been told to expect you, young duelist!" A deep voice called out.

"Commander Zure, I have few questions to ask you!" Jaden called back loudly.

A light lit up a staircase off to the right. "I accept your challenge!"

Jaden was confused. 'Challenge? I didn't challenge him.'

So, he and Aqua Dolphin climb the stairs up to the top of the middle tower. It was starting to really feel like a trap, to both of them, but there was no turning back now. When they reached the top, there was a dark-skinned Demon with big horns, waiting. Zure turned to face them, giving a creepy laugh. Jaden doubled back for a second, before he regained himself and faced Zure.

"Why are you here?" Zure demanded.

"I heard that you know about Yubel and what she does to those sent to the stars." Jaden said seriously. "A friend of mine has gone missing after dealing with her."

"And what will you do if you manage to find this friend of yours?"

Jaden paused in thought for a second. "It's my fault that he fell to darkness, so I'll say 'I'm sorry'."

Zure grinned. "Well, if this friend of yours really did get sent to the stars, then you should give up. Those, once banished to the stars, are gone."

"However," he added, "maybe I'll let something go… if you manage to beat me."

Jaden stared at him in shock. "You want to duel?"

Zure pulled out a pack of cards. "Of course. You should know that nothing in the Dark World comes for free, right? Duel!"

"Be careful," Aqua Dolphin warned as he reverted back into card form. Jaden frowned and nodded, heading to the opposite end of the room across from Zure. He wished that he could have got the information out of Zure, without having to duel for it.

The duel started. Zure went first and summoned Ryu-Kishin Powered. Then he placed a card face down. It was then Jaden's turn, and he called out Sparkman and equipped him with Lightening Blade. Sparkman's attack points increased by 800. Sparkman then attacked and defeated Ryu-Kishin.

For his turn, Zure summoned Skull Knight #2, sacrificing it to call out a powered up version of Power Murder, which looked something like a fallen-dragon and had an attack power of 2800. It attacked and easily defeated Sparkman. Because of Skull Knight #2's effect, Zure was then able to summon another one.

Using Fake Hero, Jaden called out Neos. Then he normal-summoned Glow Moss, and then fused them into Glow Neos. Zure laughed at such move, because his evolved Power Murder is stronger. Jaden smiled and activated the Neo Space field spell, making Glow Neos stronger by 1000 points. Glow Neos attacked, but then Zure activated Gravity Bind, negating the attack because Glow Neos was over Lv 4.

Jaden was surprised. "But your monster is also over Lv 4. What good is activating a card that disables Lv 4 or higher monsters from attacking?"

"I have my reasons," Zure answered simply.

Jaden blinked, confused. "Huh?" Then he realized that his feet had become stuck to the floor. "Hey! I can't move!"

Zure smirked slightly back. "Are you sure this friend you're looking for is truly most important to you?"

This just confused Jaden more. Was he talking about Jesse? Jesse had become important to him, but then again, Jaden considered all of his friends as very important. He liked them all. Just what did Zure know about Jesse?

Meanwhile, back at the castle, Jesse was with Alexis and Syrus on the battlements. They had decided to patrol, just in case some of Yubel's demons decided to attack today. They had agreed with Jaden on not to explain the situation to the people and the King, but that didn't mean they couldn't give them a warning when something did happen. The servants and such in the castle deserved that much at least, so they could hide and not be caught in any crossfire. It had been a fairly quiet day so far, that Syrus was beginning to suspect there'd be no attack after all.

"Are you sure anything's going to happen today?" he asked.

Jesse shrugged. "One thing I've learned about Yubel and her Demons is that they are very unpredictable. We should be prepared."

Syrus nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. But this is kind of boring."

"You got me there," Jesse agreed, chuckling.

Ruby was resting in his haversack, peaking through the flap. He patted her head, wondering if maybe Syrus was right. Sure, he wanted to prove himself, but maybe it would be better for everyone if there was no attack. Especially now that Jaden had left, and he was their strongest fighter. He tried to remind himself not to get careless. He had promised Jaden that he wouldn't hesitate to use the Crystal Beasts to help fight if he was in trouble. As if on cue to his thoughts, all of a sudden there came a shout from the west battlement.

"What the heck is going on?" a guard yelled. "There's this weird soldier coming this way!"

Jesse, Syrus, and Alexis came hurrying over.

"What? Where?" Jesse cried.

The guard pointed straight ahead on the path. "There, on the path. He has a whole bunch of strange shadow creatures with him."

They all looked down at the path and saw a tall man in dark armour approaching the castle. His eyes glowed a dangerous red, under the visor of his spiked helmet. It was Krai of the Dark Army. He was also known as Dark Blade by his monster name, and rumour had it that he was once a warrior of good, but had fallen to darkness and had become a demon. Around him, as he marched toward the castle, were the same assassin-shadow creatures that attacked Jesse a few days earlier.

"This is bad!" Alexis cried. "He could suck the whole castle out of life energy with a horde that size!"

Krai stopped just short of the castle west-side gate and pulled out a magic card, Darkness Rising. The whole sky around the castle suddenly went dark, and the shadow demons were up the battlements before they could even blink. Krai then used his large sword to break down the gate, charging in with the rest of the group. Jesse could hear the servants screaming in the courtyard below. He reached into his haversack for Sapphire Pegasus' crystal. The light would drive away the shadow creatures.

"I call on Sapphire Pegasus!" he cried.

Ruby's tail glowed and Sapphire Pegasus appeared above them in the sky. Light shone from his horn, blinding the shadow creatures climbing the battlements, and they fell off with high-wailing screams.

Krai noticed Sapphire Pegasus hovering above the battlements. "It's a Crystal Beast!" he yelled to his army. "The one who possesses the Rainbow Dragon must be close. Find him!"

"Jesse, run!" Alexis shouted.

"But…" Jesse started to protest.

"If you're captured, it's all over!" Alexis said urgently. "Run and hide somewhere safe!"

"We'll take things from here," Syrus assured, a determined expression on his face.

Knowing that they were probably right, Jesse nodded, called back Sapphire Pegasus, and started to run. Behind him, he could hear Alexis calling on her Cyber Angel Benten and Syrus bringing out his Jetroid. There was lots of yelling and explosions as Alexis, Syrus, and Krai's creatures engaged in battle. Down in the courtyard, a few brave (and perhaps just foolish) guards were attempting to wound the shadow creatures with their swords. Jesse wished that he could help them fight. He felt like a weak coward, running and hiding, and leaving his friends to fight this battle alone. Deciding that the least he could do was give everyone a fighting chance, he turned and tossed Alexis the magic card Mystical Space Typhoon. Alexis called 'Thanks' after him as he dashed off into the castle.

Alexis then used Mystical Space Typhoon to get rid of the darkened sky that was aiding the shadow creatures and Krai. Light returned, revealing the shadow creatures' dark masses throughout the castle courtyard. They were like so many black blobs of goo, with beady yellow eyes. Alexis was shocked at the number. Krai must have brought at least 200. How were they going to hold back that many? Unfortunately, no sooner had the sky cleared, then it darkened again. Jesse had forgotten in the danger of the moment that the shadow creatures were made up of pure darkness, and could actually summon darkness in a certain amount of space. Because they were so many of them, it covered the entire castle in darkness.

"Okay, this is really bad," Alexis said, trying not to panic.

"It's worse than that," Syrus added, shivering slightly. "I counted the number of shadows in the courtyard during the light-time. There was only half of them and Krai is gone."

"What?"

Alexis then realized that Krai must have gone after Jesse into the castle. The rest of the shadow creatures in the courtyard, attacking people at random, was just meant to distract them. Krai had probably noticed that the processor of the Rainbow Dragon (Jesse) had left the battle to hide, and gone after him. The real attack was in the castle, not the courtyard. Alexis quickly called back her Cyber Angel Benten and summoned Cyber Prima instead. Blasting away at shadow demons, she ran off toward the battlement doorway. Syrus called back Jetroid and raced after her. They didn't get very far before they were suddenly cornered by the shadows on both sides. Cyber Prima tried her best to hold them all back, it wasn't long at all before Syrus and Alexis were swarmed by them. Alexis gave a muffled scream as about three of them came upon her, starting to suck her energy.

Elsewhere, in the castle, Jesse had gotten cornered by some shadow demons too. He had been trying to run to Jaden's room. There was probably a closer hiding spot than that, and common sense said he should have gone for one of those instead. And now he was stuck, paying the price of this lack of decision. It's not like Jaden would have been there, ready to make a stand. Jesse groped around in his haversack, trying to find a good Crystal Beast to summon and fend them off, or at least clear a path. But then he remembered what happened when he called Sapphire Pegasus out in the courtyard. Unfortunately, his hesitation cost valuable time, and soon Krai showed up.

"There you are," Krai said triumphantly. "Today, we capture the one with the power of the Rainbow Dragon. Yubel is waiting for you."

"Like I'd ever let you take the Dragon!" Jesse argued back, still grasping a crystal.

"You don't seem to understand. We also need you. Without you, the power of the Crystal Beasts and the Rainbow Dragon are useless."

Jesse remembered his promise to Jaden, that he wouldn't hesitate anymore to summon the Crystal Beasts when he was in trouble. He pulled out Topaz Tiger's yellow crystal. Ruby, who was still peaking through the haversack flap, jumped out and flicked her tail. But to Jesse's surprise, nothing happened. He looked at the crystal in confusion, only to see that it had darkened over.

"No!" he cried. "What's going on?"

Krai held up a strange spiked rock. "This is blocking your beasts of Light from appearing. This rock comes from deep in the Dark World's core, and essentially cancels out the power of your Crystal Beasts! Now come with us!"

With that, the shadow demons came down upon Jesse like big sponge of jello. He gave a sharp cry as they started to rob him of his senses.

Glancing up, he had one thought before he also lost his vision, 'Damn! I hesitated and was careless. I-I'm sorry… Jaden…'

Back in Zure's tower, the duel was still going on. Jaden was now stuck to the floor, at a loss at what Zure might be planning with such a move. It was now Jaden's turn, and he summoned Wildheart to the field. Wildheart was above Lv 4, but fortunately, he was also unaffected by trap cards. So, he was able to successfully destroy Evolved Power Murder. Jaden smiled. Things were taking a good turn around, even if he still didn't have any information on the whereabouts of Tory.

It was Zure's turn again next, and he activated Heavy Storm, destroying his own Gravity Bind trap card. Jaden could move again, but was confused as to why Zure used a card to immobilize them, only to deactivate it. Zure then used the field spell Power Zone, cancelling out Neo Space, and then summoned a normal Power Murder. The colourful space theme of Neo Space deactivated, returning Glow Neos' ATK points to their original 2500. A big green, warped looking creature then appeared on Zure's side of the field. Zure then commanded it to attack Glow Neos, and because Glow Neos was stronger, Power Murder's ATK increased by 1000 to 2800, and it destroyed Glow Neos. Jaden screamed in pain as a burst power erupted from the crater and decreased his life points.

"Just what is your strategy?" Jaden asked, wobbling slightly and frowning at Zure. "You don't seem to be attacking me to send me to the stars; and you don't seem to want to give me any information either.'

Zure laughed. "If you stay here, caring about Tory, you might lose the rest of your friends."

"What?" Jaden became alert at this. "Do you mean Jesse? Just what do you know, Zure. Talk!"

"The strategy of all this is, that we knew you were coming to look for your friend, Tory. I have to keep you here, while Krai and his horde of shadow demons attack your castle for the boy with the Dragon's power."

Jaden was starting to feel seriously mad that this had all been a trap from the beginning. 'I have to get back. Jesse!'

"If you're thinking of getting back on time, forget it." Zure said, sneering. "My job is to keep you here for as long as possible, and if it means sending you to the stars, I suppose that works too."

"There's no way I'm staying here, while my friends are in trouble!" Jaden shot back, glaring at Zure.

It was Jaden's turn, and he activated Hero Signal, calling back Neos. Then he used Cocoon Party, to bring out the Cocoon's of Chicky and Baby Dolphin. His drawn card had been Cocoon Veil, so he activated it, evolving them to Air Hummingbird and Aqua Dolphin. They did Contact Fusion with Neos, and merged into Storm Neos. Because of his effect, Jaden could destroy one magic card, so Power Zone was destroyed. Storm Neos then attacked and defeated Power Murder.

A cloud of dust arose. Jaden took advantage of it, and ran away, calling back his monsters as he did. The duel wasn't really over yet, but it didn't really matter if he finished it or not. Zure had had no intention from the start to tell him anything about Tory. It had all been a distraction for him, while the Dark Army went after Jesse.

Conveniently, there was a pen full of Sonic Ducks next to Zure's fortress. Jaden unhitched one and got on. The Sonic Duck was fast, and soon he reached the town he had come across earlier. Jaden hoped that he would reach the castle in time, and that Jesse would be okay. The promise they made the night before, made him hope strongly. Plus, Alexis and Syrus were strong fighters too. He hurried on.

A short while later, continuing at the Sonic Duck's mach 5 speed, he reached the outskirts of the westward forest, and could see the castle in the distance. The sky was black. He couldn't even see the light from the meteor. An uneasy feeling growing in his chest, Jaden raced toward the castle. As if on cue to his dreading thoughts, Winged Kuriboh suddenly appeared out of a tree, its fur all frazzled. He was too late!

And there we have it! Chapter 8 complete. Woot! Finally! : D I originally planned on having Jaden go to several fortresses of the Dark Army in his search for information on Tory, but that probably would have taken at least another chapter. But because I essentially wanted Jaden to face Zure in a duel in this chapter, the rest of them were removed. Krai was originally one of them, but I think him turning into the attack force on the castle turned out rather well. I'm not totally sure I did okay with the duel in this chapter. And I know that Zure isn't the leader of the Dark Army. In the TV show, he is the Knight of Dark Army, and Bryonn is the leader. Maybe Zure gets demoted. XD

Well, again, I am so sorry that I took so long in updating. I'm a stupid little procrastinator, I know. ^^; So, I won't promise that I'll update real soon. Instead, I am going to take some good advice and work on several chapters before uploading again. That way, I'll have a good sense to keep this story flowing smoothly. So, be patient. Thanks and I'll see you around. Ciao! ^_^


	9. Chapter 9

Hi all! Whoa, it's 2011 now, and half-way through the year. Does time fly or what? o.O Anyway, I've finally pushed myself through Chapter 9, and I feel pretty good about this chapter. Woot! I'm back on track! ^^ Which is saying a lot, considering I seem to be drifting away from fandom of Yu-gi-oh, and this fan-fic gets more challenging to write the more time goes on. My mind seems to be drifting toward random story ideas for Professor Layton, after I finished playing _Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, _and felt that there was a lot left unsaid, or things that should have happened but didn't. And… now I'm rambling! ^^; So, this chapter is pretty much a wrap up from the events in Chapter 8, as Jaden arrives back at the castle.

Without further ado, on we go! ^_^

Chapter 9 - Aftermath

Jaden spurred the Sonic Duck on toward the castle, with Winged Kuriboh flying along to his left and chirping urgently. Even from such a distance, he could tell that the attack was over. He hoped that his friends were all right, but the thick dark clouds looming over the castle told him otherwise. Everything seemed to have gone terribly wrong from the beginning.

When he reached the castle gate, he saw that it had been thrust inward with great force. He dismounted from the Sonic Duck (which then dashed away) and went in. The courtyard was a rumbled mess, splintered wood and broken bricks off the battlements lying everywhere. Jaden was most shocked to see that so many people had been injured in the attack. The castle soldiers had obviously tried to fight back, but all the broken swords scattered around said that their efforts had been futile. Jaden noticed Miss Fona tending to one of the soldiers and headed over. Miss Fona and the solider heard footsteps and looked over at him as he approached.

"Prince Jaden!" the soldier cried, his face mixed with pain and a sense of relief.

Jaden knelt down next to him. "What happened?" he questioned seriously.

The solider gave a brief shrug. "I don't exactly know. We had been alerted by Alexis and Syrus that there might be an attack by some monsters. One minute, all was quiet; it didn't seem like there was going to be an attack by anything. The next thing we know, we hear that there is a strange army approaching from the west side. I saw your friends run to the west battlement, and then the army outside started bursting through the gate and climbing the walls. A winged-horse appeared and the light from its horn seemed to fend some of the horde off. But then, their leader Krai yelled something about the wielder of a Rainbow Dragon being nearby, and the monsters started attacking the castle more furiously. I never saw the likes of them before. They were like black shadows and our swords were useless. Once it got completely dark around the castle by that black cloud, there was nothing we could do."

"Why didn't you fight back with the monsters from your cards?" Jaden asked.

"Cards?" the soldier scoffed. "We don't have that luxury. The King won't let us lowly soldiers fight with anything, but swords."

Jaden frowned. "That's ridiculous! I'll have a talk with the King. So… then what happened?"

"The light came back when somebody used a storm to blow the darkness away. Unfortunately, it didn't last too long, and the darkness came back. The shadow creatures were ruthless against us. Once they get on top of you, you feel yourself getting weaker and can't fight back." The solider looked at Jaden with worried eyes. "Your highness, what is going on? Why did this strange army attack us?"

'It must have been the same shadow creatures that attacked Jesse a few days ago,' Jaden realized. 'To think, they would bring back a whole mob. I should have stayed. I could have fought, and then all these people wouldn't have been hurt. I should have told them the truth. Then they could have prepared better. This whole mess is my fault!'

A brief image of Jesse frowning at him flashed through his mind, like telling him to stop blaming himself. He couldn't have known that Yubel and her Dark Army would be one step ahead. He then wondered what happened to his friends during the attack. Zure had said that he would be too late to help them.

Growing uneasy, Jaden looked from the solider to Miss Fona. "Where are Syrus and Alexis? Where's Jesse? Are my friends all right?" he gushed.

Miss Fona tried to smile reassuringly, but the bleakness of the situation made it rather difficult. "The last I saw of Jesse was when that winged-horse appeared. Syrus and Alexis were trying to fight off the shadows on the west battlement, but in all the chaos, I couldn't tell if they made it. "

Jaden nodded. "I'll find them."

Miss Fona shook her head. "I wouldn't get my hopes up, your highness. Now, I have more injured to attend to. If you find your friends, let me know. I'm sure that they will need care as well."

Jaden nodded again and dashed off.

When he arrived at the west battlement, he spotted Alexis first. She had just regained consciousness and was trying to prop herself up against the wall. Syrus lay not far from her, still unconscious and one of his cards clutched in his hands. Alexis looked up as Jaden ran over to them.

"Are you guys all right?" Jaden cried.

"Jaden, is that you?" Alexis asked. She relaxed a little, trying to smile. "I think I'm okay. I'll let you know once I can see properly."

"What happened here? Where's Jesse?"

Alexis shrugged. "The last I saw of him was when we had to send him into the castle to hide. He had tried to fend off those things with Sapphire Pegasus; but that just alerted their leader that he was here. I hope he's all right too, Jaden, but we didn't count that Krai would split his forces… at least I didn't. By the time I realized it, those shadow things were sucking us dry. I'm sorry, Jaden."

Jaden smiled back, trying to reassure her. "Hey, you tried your best. They got the best of me too."

"What do you mean?"

"They were onto us from the start. The Dark Army knew that I was coming to look for Tory. Zure forced me to duel him so that I would be held up for as long as possible. It felt like a trap the moment I stepped into his castle. I should have listened to my gut."

"So, we all made mistakes," Alexis reasoned.

Jaden felt himself sag a little. "That's one way of putting it."

"Then there's only one thing left to do: heal up and prepare better for next time," Alexis said confidently.

"You're right. I'll start by finding Jesse. He might still be hiding in the castle. Will you be all right?"

Alexis nodded. "I'll be fine. Just need rest."

Jaden smiled slightly, called down to Miss Fona that he had found Syrus and Alexis, and headed off into the castle.

He was quick to notice that in the castle, there were several people propping themselves up against the corridor walls. The shadow demons had gotten inside the castle, which he now realized what Alexis meant when she said that Krai had spilt his forces. Jesse had run into the castle to hide, and obviously Krai had noticed and sent some of the shadow demons inside after him, while the others distracted everyone else. Jaden felt seriously ticked off that the Dark Army had been so well prepared. Winged Kuriboh waiting outside for him when he first arrived, should have been enough to say that Jesse was no longer here. The Dark Army had won this time around, and Jesse was probably being held captive by them. He stubbornly didn't want to believe it, but it sounded too logical on the way everything had gone. Jaden suddenly felt like he was about to cry, and banged his fist against the wall as a way of venting out frustration.

'They knew! Yubel knew exactly when Jesse and I would split up! The Dark Army attacking soon after I leave is too much of coincidence. It was a trap from the beginning, and I didn't realize it at all! Some duelist prince I am! I let people get hurt because I couldn't figure out my priorities, and who is most important. It's my fault! Dammit!'

He growled and banged his fist against the wall again. When you fail to conquer the darkness and your light is gone, what are you supposed to do then? How do you find that spark of light, when the darkness is always ahead of you? His heart felt like it had a 100 ton weight on it, and he couldn't find the strength to lift it off. Jaden felt himself himself sag to the ground, as he curled up over his knees, hands covering his eyes. Winged Kuriboh chirped determinedly next to him, trying to get him move and fight back, but Jaden just ignored it.

Awhile later, he was found like that by Syrus and Alexis. They had both been treated for the injuries, but were still a little shaky at moving around. Alexis bent down and a comforting hand on his shoulder. When Jaden hardly responded, she was concerned.

"Jaden, what's wrong?" Alexis asked.

"Jesse's gone," Jaden mumbled through his hands. "People were hurt, because I insisted on not telling them what is going on. It's all my fault!"

"You don't have to shoulder all the blame alone. We all screwed up by being unprepared."

Jaden just shrugged her off, and stormed away.

Awhile later, he arrived at his room. He went in, loudly slamming the door behind him. He was shocked at how frustrated he really was. So, he messed up. He had before, but had come out fighting in the end. Bad things do happen, but you shouldn't let them pull you down until you can't stand up. Unconsciously, Jaden started pacing. It was a way to beat off energy at any rate. Winged Kuriboh watched, waiting for what Jaden would do, when something caught its attention on a table in the middle of the room. Chirping loudly, it flew over with Jaden following.

"What's gotten into you?"

Winged Kuriboh landed on the table. Jaden then noticed that a note had been left there. He opened it, and it read:

"_It looks like you have made your decision as to who is your important friend. But you have arrived too late to protect him. Are you sure you made the right choice? _

_Jesse is mine now, along with a way of getting the Rainbow Dragon. With its power, I will change this world. _

_Since you failed this time, I'll give you a fair fighting chance to find me, before I take the Dragon. _

_I reside in a place where no light shines, and barred by iron. See if you can find me, my dear Jaden._"

Jesse was now with Yubel. The note confirmed it. It was only a legend, but Yubel seemed to strongly believe that the Rainbow Dragon had the power to grant any wish. And her wish was to remake the world as she saw fit. Jaden still didn't know who the most important person to him was, but Jesse had become a close friend for the time they had known each other. He had to rescue him! If only he could figure out where this lightless place, barred by iron, is. There were a few places where he could think it might be - that were known anyway. First was the Black woods, a forest so dense, that no light from the meteor broke through the canopy; rumour had it, that there was an old haunted manor in there, with a rusted iron fence around it. There was a castle to the north of the eastward village that was one of the known bases of the Dark Army, but the Demons there seemed to be waiting for someone else other than Yubel. Who that person was, no one really knew. And then there was the Dark Gate in the middle of the desert; it was made of solid iron, though no one knew where it lead - because no one had been brave (or foolish) enough to venture through.

Lost in thought on this riddle, Jaden started pacing again, scrunching and twisting the note in his hands. He was startled out of it by a loud knock at the door. He thought it was just Alexis coming to check on him again, and just ignored it. She would try and cheer him up again, saying it was not his fault. Deep down, Jaden knew this, but just wanted to be left alone for awhile. But the loud knocking persisted, until he grumbled a loud "Go Away!", but went to answer it anyway. The King strode in.

"'Go Away'? Is this how you greet your father and the King?"

Jaden glanced away, frowning slightly. "Sorry, I thought it was Alexis."

"Alexis is resting after being found by Miss Fona, collapsed in the corridor where you left her," The King stated. "And isn't she is your friend? Why would you order her away?"

"Don't say 'order'. It's not like that." Jaden said simply. He really didn't feel like explaining his reasons to his father.

When Jaden didn't answer, the King sighed and turned stern. "Is that so? Well, then why are you here? You should be out helping the wounded or fortifying the defences around the castle. We have suffered a great attack."

Jaden nodded. "Yes, and it's all my fault," he mumbled quietly.

His father fixed him with a hard look. "Why is that? What have you done?"

And Jaden then decided to risk it and tell the King everything. He wasn't sure if the King would believe him or not, or scold him, or what kind of view he would have. But the truth needed to be told now, and it might help overcome his frustration at having failed to realize the Dark Army's plan and get back on time.

So, he explained how he first met Jesse; and about Yubel and the Dark Army being after him for a long time because of the Rainbow Dragon. He told of how Jesse is the holder of the Crystal Beasts, and that according to legend, whoever holds the Crystal Beasts is also processor of the Rainbow Dragon. Yubel certainly was also a part of legend, as no one has really seen her actively appear - until now. Jaden explained how Tory had been jealous of his and Jesse's fast friendship, and that had turned his heart to darkness, so that Yubel could appear from the darkness of his heart; and when Yubel showed up, Tory vanished. The King listened in silence as Jaden reached the point of the recent events, of how he and his friends decides not to tell the people about Yubel being after Jesse because of the Rainbow Dragon. And when Jaden had gone to look for information on what happened to Tory, only to be caught in a trap, and make it back to castle too late to partake in stopping the attack.

After the story, the King finally spoke. "So, this Jesse boy really was a target for trouble, just like the guards warned me of. We should have…"

Jaden rolled his eyes. "That's the whole reason I didn't tell you. Jesse is a stranger, and if it meant sending him away to protect the people in the castle, you and the guards would have done it. I couldn't allow that to happen!"

"But look at the result of your decision! Sometimes the sacrifice of one life is for the better, rather than the loss of hundred lives."

"Sending Jesse away wouldn't have solved anything!" Jaden argued. "Weren't you listening to anything I just explained to you? The power of the Rainbow Dragon can grant any wish, and Yubel wants this power to remake the world. She can change everything to how she wishes it, and make people suffer things ten times worse than losing energy!" His anger spent, he let go a long sigh. "I'm sorry. You're right. Because I didn't explain things properly, lots of people were hurt when they shouldn't have been."

"So, what will you do to make amends to them?"

Jaden thought for a minute. He wasn't entirely sure how to make up for his errors. "Well," he said slowly, "I'll confess and explain everything that I just told you. And then the soldiers should be given their monsters decks and taught how to fight and defend. Jesse was the Dark Army's target, and so now that they have him, they probably won't come back for awhile. But we should still be prepared for whatever Yubel has planned for the world."

The King nodded and turned toward the door. "Good. That is a start."

"And also…" Jaden went on quietly.

The King glanced back at him. "And?"

"I want to go and rescue Jesse from Yubel and the Dark Army."

The King frowned, his expression firm. "Absolutely not! That boy has brought everyone here enough danger at it is. If this Yubel is planning to control the world and attack us, we have a duty to stay here and defend the people! I cannot allow you to engage in a foolish venture like charging headlong into their base for your friend."

"It's not foolish!" Jaden shot back, his eyes blazing. "Jesse is a close friend of mine, and besides if I can get him back and defeat Yubel… everyone will…"

"Enough!" The King suddenly roared. "After you explain the truth of this matter to everyone, I will accept you training the soldiers and those who wish it how to duel with monster cards. But nothing else! You're the prince of the Dark World, and you have an obligation to your people."

Jaden glowered at his father, but realizing it was pointless to argue further, he just nodded silently. Why did most of the conversations with his father end in an argument? They did just had different views on what was to be done on things like duty and priority. At the very least, the King had consented to teaching the soldiers of the castle how to duel. Jaden still wanted to rescue Jesse, but decided that the King did have a point about the obligation of what should be done first.

The next day was an busy one. Jaden called everyone to the Great Hall, where he talked for a good hour about the solid truth of everything that happened. There were some people who listened, nodding their heads occasionally, like they had guessed all along that these things were going since Jesse came to the castle. Others, mostly the guards or hard-core servants, shook their heads disapprovingly, like they thought that the attack on the castle wouldn't have happened if Jesse had never come here in the first place. Jaden glanced at the front row as he talked, and saw Tory's mother standing there. It was hard to tell if she was among those who thought that as long as there was someone to blame and he was gone, all the better for everyone else. It hurt to think that she felt like that, but he could hardly blame her. After his long-talk-explanation, Jaden left the people alone with their thoughts, saying that those who wished to learn to duel with monster cards, were to meet him in the courtyard that afternoon.

Awhile later, he met up with Syrus and Alexis. They both looked to be much better than when he saw them last, and it surprised him at how quickly they were recovering from their life energy being sucked by the Shadow Demons.

Alexis smiled as he walked in, "So, how did it go?" she asked.

Jaden shrugged. "Hard to tell. Some people believed me, and said they held no grudge for me holding back the truth; while others were straight angry at me. Can't really blame them though, considering this whole mess is mostly my fault for not explaining it all in the first place, and falling into the Dark Army's trap. Yubel was just waiting for a chance when I would be reckless and leave off without a plan."

"If Jesse were here, he would tell to stop blaming yourself for everything," Syrus said firmly.

Jaden laughed slightly. "You're right. He would do that."

There was a sullen silence. They had all promised to protect Jesse from Yubel, and they had all failed.

"So," Alexis finally asked, "what are we going to do now?"

Jaden pondered for a second, and then pulled out the note from Yubel. "Well, I found this in my room yesterday. Yubel is issuing me a challenge to find her - before she takes the Rainbow Dragon from Jesse's heart."

Alexis took the note and read it over several times. Then she looked up and muttered, "Hmm… '_a place where no light shines, barred by iron_'… I wonder where that is."

"Yeah, I have no clue either."

"Well, it could be a few places, " Syrus said seriously. "Like that house in the Northern Woods, that everyone says is haunted. It has a iron fence and a gate around it."

Alexis shook her head. "No, I doubt Yubel's base is there. It's too well-known, not too mention too small to hide most of the Dark Army."

Syrus nodded, feeling a little discouraged. "Yeah, that's true."

They both looked over at Jaden to see if he could venture a guess as to where this lightless place could possibly be. However, Jaden was lost in thought again. Something told him that most likely place where Yubel and her Army would be is past the Dark Gate. It was made of solid black iron, and for made to stand in the middle of the desert for reasons unknown. Where it lead, or why it was put there, no one knew; for no one is known to have gone beyond it and come back. But the more Jaden thought about it, the more he felt drawn to go and see it and put this theory to the test. If it meant that Jesse could be on the other side in a huge black castle dungeon or something, he wanted to take the risk.

"There's the Cast-iron Fortress," Syrus suggested.

Alexis shook her head again. "That place is well-known as a base for Fiends, not Demons. Besides, that place can be seen by the light of the meteor in the evening. The riddle clearly says that Yubel is in '_a place where no light shines._' Honestly, Syrus, think on it more seriously before shooting out random guesses."

"I am taking this seriously," Syrus shot back, pouting. "I want to solve this, and find where Yubel has taken Jesse just as much as you!"

"All right, all right. I'm sorry."

Jaden was brought back to the matter, listening to their bickering. "What about the Dark Gate?" he offered.

Alexis looked over at him. "Where's that?"

"It's that big black iron gate in the desert. I wonder what lies beyond it."

"Don't think like that!" Syrus suddenly cried. "I hear that the Dark Gate is dangerous. Once you go through, there's no guarantee that you'll ever come back!"

"But Jesse…!"

"Is somewhere in the Dark World," Alexis reasoned. "Yubel is tricky, but she clearly wants you to find her with this testing riddle. She wouldn't take Jesse somewhere where's there's no certainty that you'll make it there."

'Or would she?' Jaden wondered.

He had a strange feeling about the Dark Gate. It certainly was foreboding and a complete mystery. But there was just something about it that made him feel strongly that it was the right way. He and Yubel seemed connected somehow. Like when he had felt what she had done to Tory, all the way from his own room, in a dream. They could sense things about the each other. The more he thought about it, the more it seemed likely. Yubel was waiting for him to realize this feeling. She didn't set the riddle like a map; it was a riddle to see if he could act on this strange connection. It angered him to sense this, but… the Dark Gate... It's not improbable..

Alexis and Syrus didn't seem to think the Dark Gate was the right answer. Or maybe they were just afraid of it. They were all kinds of bad rumours about it after all. The riddle Yubel left in her note didn't seem all that complicated, but it was turning out to be the more they thought about it, and couldn't reach a logical answer. Jaden's head was starting to hurt from thinking so much, and getting hardly anywhere in the process, so he decided to head for the courtyard for the duelling instruction. Alexis stayed to continue to work on the riddle, while Syrus went to help Jaden teach.

When they reached the courtyard, about half of the castle guards were there, along with a few of the servants. A broad number of cards had been provided by the King, and they could all construct a deck fit for them. Jaden essentially had no idea how to teach people how to duel; but he and Syrus explained as best they could how you couldn't just stock your deck with strong monsters, because then there be no way to summon them to the field without weaker ones as tributes. Plus some supposedly "weak" monsters have useful effects for countering. Don't disregard something because its Star-level is low, or it doesn't have a high ATK. Sometimes monster with weak ATK, but high DEF, come in very handy. Trap and Spell cards enhance a deck, like equipping things to monsters of the same attribute (like Dark Magician with the Book of Black Arts, because he is a Spell-caster), or countering against an opponent's attack (such as protecting Sparkman, an Elemental Hero, with Hero Barrier). When everyone seemed to get an understanding of the basics, Jaden decided that the best way for them to get the hang of battling with cards would simply be for everyone to duel each other. Some things are just learned better by doing after all. Duels broke out everywhere, and they all tried to figure out when to declare attacks, when to defend, and catch their opponents off guard. It was hard to tell if anyone was good enough to fight against Yubel when the time came, but everyone was willing to improve the more they fought.

Night finally came, and Jaden headed off to his room, feeling exhausted. He arrived there to find Winged Kuriboh by the middle window chirping loudly. Jaden went to the window and looked out. The meteor was streaking off to the south-east, and the sky was lighted up with a bright yellowish orange. That was the direction of the Dark Gate in the desert. The Dark Gate was shrouded in mystery, but it did seem probable that Yubel was beyond it a tall dark castle, with her army (and Jesse). The yellowish orange glow in the sky reminded Jaden of when he first met Jesse, and Ruby's tail had glowed brightly to summon Topaz Tiger. It was only a hunch based on a sensory feeling, but it seemed like something was calling Jaden to the Dark Gate. Risky or not, Jaden wanted to find Jesse, if going through that Gate was the right way, Jaden decided he had to go.

Meanwhile, Alexis was trying to figure out the riddle left in Yubel's note. She had a map laid out in front of her, and had been marking off the possible dark places that Yubel and her Demons might be. But each idea came up empty, when she realized that the light of the meteor touched a bit of those places when it passed over on its course. It was getting to be very perplexing and discouraging. Then suddenly, Syrus burst in the room.

"Alexis!" he cried. "You have to get outside and look at the sky!"

Alexis went to the window in the room, and saw the bright yellow sky in the distance. She then remembered what Jaden had said about the Dark Gate. He had proposed it as an idea of where Yubel had gone, but they had brushed it off as too dangerous, and not likely. Now that she thought about it, the Dark Gate wasn't all that impossible as a place where Yubel would go.

"Do you remember what Jaden suggested earlier as a possible place where Yubel resides?" she asked seriously.

Syrus nodded, but didn't really like where this was going. "The Dark Gate. But that's…"

"I thought so too. But it's not impossible. Yubel wants Jaden to find her, but not in a hurry. She'll want time to summon the Rainbow Dragon from Jesse's heart. If there's something beyond the Dark Gate that could lead Jaden to her, but still slow him down, then…"

"Then she'll want to call Jaden to the Gate," Syrus said, starting to catch on. "But no one knows where the Dark Gate even leads."

Alexis started folding up her map, and gathering her deck and other supplies together. "I think that Yubel knows that Jaden is willing to take the risk. She has his close friend after all."

Syrus nodded again. "You're right." Then something hit him like a bolt of lightning. "Hey wait! You don't think…!"

"That he's already left?" Alexis questioned, suddenly realizing it as well. She ran to the door. "Come on! We'd better go check on him!"

A short while later, they reached Jaden's room. Alexis rapped sharply on the door.

"Jaden?" she called. "Are you there? About the Dark Gate, we think you were right!"

"C'mon Jay, open the door!" Syrus yelled.

There was no answer. Alexis finally grew impatient, and knocked open the door with a swift kick. The door flew open, but the room was dark and empty. Alexis and Syrus ran to the window. Down in the courtyard, they could see the figure of Jaden leaving the castle through the east side gate.

And there I think we'll leave it for today. ^_^ Whew, I finally finished Chapter 9. Congratulate me! I have persevered! ^^ I am very happy right now, to have finally completed another chapter, despite always getting distracted. Woot!

Anyway, this chapter seemed to go all over the place as I was writing it. I essentially just wanted Jaden to return to the castle, find the note from Yubel, and want to go and rescue Jesse - with Syrus and Alexis insisting that they come along. (Which they will end up doing in the next chapter.) I didn't plan on putting in Jaden teaching the castle soldiers how to duel (and didn't know what to do when it ended up in there), but being as it did, I just went with it. Weird, I know, but whatever.

Well, in Chapter 10, we will catch up with what's happened with Jesse since his capture, and have Jaden (and Syrus and Alexis) going through the Dark Gate. I hope to get around to it soon, and keep it flowing smoothly. ^^;

Review, tell me how I did, and I'll catch ya later. Ciao! ^_^


	10. Chapter 10

Hey all! I'm back with Chapter 10. I feel very proud right now to have done this chapter, without taking a whole other year. I'm back on track! ^^ Thank you to those who favourited and reviewed since the last chapter. Honestly, I wouldn't have been surprised if there was hardly anyone left reading this story, because I take so long in updating. To those who came back to read and those who are new, I thank you so very much. It means a lot that people continue to enjoy this story. Especially, since Yu-gi-oh GX is far over, and the show has pushed passed 5Ds into the far future with Zexal. Speaking of which, I find Yuma and Astral to be very good characters. Yuma's silly but still cool; and Astral is very mysterious, but his "observations" can be quite amusing. XD Anyway, this is story of mine is going to get a bit dark from this point on. I hope you continue to enjoy it.

So, without too much delay, on we go!

Chapter 10 - To and Beyond the Dark Gate

It was pitch black. There were no windows at all in the tiny room, where Krai and his soldiers had thrown him. Jesse had woken up soon after arriving. He could feel that his eyes were open, but in this darkness it was hard to tell. Maybe he was still asleep, but had subconsciously stood up, knowing he had been put in some kind of cell. Jesse shook his head vigourously. No, he was awake.

So then, where was he? The room felt damp, and it took awhile before his eyes started to get accustomed to the dark. Jesse reached to his side for his haversack. But it was gone, which meant so were the Crystal Beasts. Krai must have taken it to Yubel, while he was thrown into this dungeon. Jesse started walking around, feeling about the walls. There was no way out, except the door, which was probably locked. After going around the cell a few times, Jesse slumped down against the wall.

"I've really done it this time," he muttered to himself. "I let my guard down so carelessly against Krai, and look where I end up."

A chuckle escaped his mouth at the thought, and the sound of it almost made him cry. Being here in the dark, with no clue as to what was going to happen, had to be one of the scariest and loneliest feelings in the world. He wondered if Jaden would come to rescue him. Their promise had obviously been broken. He hadn't protected himself very well at all. Would Jaden be angry?

Jesse was startled out of his thoughts by the sound of a key turning in the lock. He stood up, backing against the far wall and bracing himself. The door flew open, and two spike-helmeted Demon Soldiers came in. Without a word, they went over to Jesse and forcefully pulled him from the room.

"Hey, let me go!" Jesse cried out, trying to plant his feet firmly to the floor.

They ignored him, dragging him down the corridor. Jesse took a quick glance around, and realized that he had been taken to some black-stoned castle. The two Demon Soldiers took him to a room, with several sets of shackles lining the walls. Spiked whips, various needles, and cords to strange machines were lying on tables around the room. Jesse realized right away that this is probably the torture chamber, and he shivered violently. The pair of Demon Soldiers laughed nastily as they clasped him to the wall.

Despite his nerves, Jesse tried to glare defiantly at them. "Just what are you going to do to me? Doesn't Yubel need me in tact to call on the Rainbow Dragon?"

This time, one of the Demon Soldiers spoke. "That was just to capture you. Now that you're here in the castle, the method she came up with to call on the Dragon is to torture you beyond humanly capable."

Jesse fought back a gulp of fear. He continued to glare at his captors. "And just what makes you think that will work?" he demanded. "The Crystal Beasts are the key to the legend. Just tormenting me won't get Yubel what she wants."

"Oh, how unaware are you, dear Jesse," a female voice crooned.

Jesse glanced over at the door, to see that Yubel herself had entered the torture chamber. Yubel smiled confidently at him.

"You seem to have forgotten," she said, pacing up to him. "It is true that the Crystal Beasts connect with the Rainbow Dragon inside your heart. It was proven as much when they glowed and called forth its shadow to save you from the vampire and the cloak-demons. But be that as it may, the Rainbow Dragon is your ultimate protector. It lives to protect you, even from the depths of your pure-lighted heart. In order to make the Crystal Beasts react and the Dragon appear, you will have to be pushed close to death. That is the reality of the legend, dear Jesse."

Jesse fell silent, the fullness of her words sinking in.

"Shall we begin, Milady?" the other Demon Soldier asked.

Yubel nodded and left the room. The two Soldiers then got to work. They ripped open Jesse's tunic, and attached all kinds of cords to his bare chest. The cords were connected to some kind of electric pump machine. Jesse's eyes widened in terror.

"No!" he yelled, thrashing about. "Don't! Please… don't…!"

His cries of protest were cut short as they activated the machine. Jesse gave a loud scream of pain that echoed around the room.

'Jaden… Help me…'

Meanwhile, Alexis and Syrus had been following Jaden through the forest toward the desert. They had seen him leave through the east side gate from the King's castle. Determined to help, they had quickly set out after him. But Jaden had gotten a good head start, and was walking at a fast pace. They had to jog just to keep him in sight. He didn't seem to have noticed them yet. Alexis had wanted to call out to him several times, but kept thinking better of it. Until they were a good league away from the castle, it wouldn't be good to have Jaden spot them and send them back. Jaden was obviously disobeying the King by sneaking out to rescue Jesse, on his own.

"Jaden's probably not going to be happy that were trailing him," Syrus said awhile later. "What guarantee is there that he'll listen to us?"

"Oh, who cares," Alexis grumbled, glowering. "I'll be the one to yell at him when we catch up. It'll serve him right for ditching us after asking for our aid!"

Once out of the forest and beyond the next village, Jaden stopped for a rest. He had been wise enough this time to bring along a map, and knew that just a bit further ahead was the beginning of the desert. The desert was vast, sometimes windy; so he was taking a rest before starting the trek across it. The Dark Gate was somewhere in the middle of the desert. Where, he had no idea, but the plan was to use a couple of his winged monsters to help him search. As Jaden rested, this allowed just enough time for Syrus and Alexis to catch up.

"Jaden, there you are!" Syrus called out.

Jaden looked over at them in surprise. "Syrus, Alexis… what are you guys doing here?"

Alexis came up, her eyes narrowed in anger, and whacked him over the head.

"Ow!" Jaden cried. He looked back at Alexis, his head smarting. "What's the big idea?"

Alexis put her hands on her hips, her mouth in tight frown as she glared at him. "I should be asking you that, Jaden! Just what are you doing, going off by yourself? Didn't we agree that we would help you when you asked? And then you go and just leave us behind! Just how far do you think you'll get, going beyond the Dark Gate on your own?"

Jaden sighed. "You two didn't even believe the Dark Gate was a possible answer."

Syrus shrugged sheepishly. "Yeah… about that. We think you're right about the Dark Gate. Yubel wants to call you through the Gate, but knowing it could lead anywhere, it will still slow you down."

"So, we've come to help you." Alexis put in quickly. "There will be a better chance of finding Jesse if we all work together."

Jaden relaxed, smiling slightly. "Thank you. I do appreciate your help." Then his expression turned stern. "But if this is all part of Yubel's plan to lure me, then that's all the more reason why I have to go alone."

"Jaden, you're being ridiculous!" Alexis snapped.

"Yeah, Jay," Syrus agreed, glaring at his friend. "You asked us to help protect Jesse when you called us to the castle. We want to do our part to rescue him."

"But it's too dangerous!" Jaden protested.

"Jesse is our friend too," Alexis said firmly. "We're coming whether you agree you need our help or not!"

Seeing that it was pointless to argue, Jaden slumped to the ground in defeat. They were obviously determined to come along, and actually he was secretly glad that they were. He nodded.

"All right. We're in this together then."

Alexis nodded back, smiling broadly. "Good. Because we also know that you're kind of hopeless without us."

"And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Now let's go!"

So, they began the hike out into the desert.

Jaden summoned Avian and Air Hummingbird to help search for the Dark Gate from the sky. He kept up a hard pace, refusing to slow down. Alexis was starting get annoyed that Jaden seemed to be ignoring them. She tried to mention that speeding headlong though a desert isn't a good idea. The heat can make you get tired fast, and without water breaks, it could get dangerous. Realizing the logic behind her reasoning, Jaden finally agreed to a break about an hour later.

As they were taking a breather and a drink, it was then that Air Hummingbird spotted something big and black in the distance. He flew off to confirm if it was the Dark Gate. It was a good mile or so from where Jaden and his friends were resting, but he had good eyesight. As he got closer, he saw that it was a huge door. The door was about 20 feet high, no doorknob at all (even for a giant), and a pair of bat wings were etched around the top. Air Hummingbird flew back to tell Jaden what he had found. Convinced that they had finally reached the Dark Gate, Jaden and his friends headed quickly headed off to the door. About two hours later, they finally arrived.

Jaden was amazed at the size of it. "This has to be it!" he exclaimed, unable to hide his excitement. "The Dark Gate! Yubel and Jesse are on the other side of this, I know it!"

"What are you so happy about?" Syrus asked, scowling. "Who knows where we'll end up when we go through. We could end up in an alternate dimension for all we know."

"Don't be such a worrywart."

"I'm not. I'm just being reasonable."

"Being reasonable and being scared are two different things. I already said it will probably be too dangerous for you, but you wanted to come. In fact, I'd still rather you and Alexis stay behind. Yubel is not after either of you, so you shouldn't be put in danger."

Syrus frowned. "Not this again! We've already said that we're coming."

Alexis heaved a deep sigh. "Would you two stop it? Your bickering is giving me a headache. Besides, we've got another problem."

Jaden stared over at her. "And what's that?"

"How the heck are we supposed to get this huge door open?" Alexis stated seriously. "There's no handle, no special lock. There's no point talking about what's on the other side until we actually open it."

Jaden laughed, looking back over at Syrus. "She has a point."

They sat down on the sand, thinking on what they should do. The door was made of some kind of thick iron. No matter how much they physically pushed, it would not open. Even when their monsters helped them push or attacked it, it remained shut.

'What could be keeping this thing closed?' Syrus wondered. 'We could hit it with everything we've got and it still wouldn't budge. Even the monsters helping us push or attacking it didn't work.'

Pondering on this train of thought, Syrus then wondered if maybe monsters were the key to get the door open. But not by attacking or pushing. He turned determinedly to his friends.

"I have an idea. Jaden, Alexis, summon your strongest monster and pretend to be duelling each other."

Jaden smiled broadly. "Syrus, you're a genius! That just might work."

"You should do it too, Syrus," Alexis said. "Everyone who is going through should take part in this 'duel'."

Syrus shook his head. "You two are way stronger duelists than I am. My strength won't make the Dark Gate open."

Alexis frowned. "That's nonsense, and you know it."

"Oh whatever," Jaden grumbled impatiently, pulling out his deck. "Let's do it. We can't waste any more time. Yubel is not going to wait for long to summon the Rainbow Dragon from Jesse's heart."

Realizing that Jaden had a point about Yubel, Alexis moved to stand opposite him in front of the Dark Gate. They didn't have time to stand around arguing. However, she was still annoyed that Jaden hadn't seemed the least bit concerned that Syrus was thinking himself powerless.

Well, Jaden summoned Neos and Alexis called out Cyber Angel - Benten. The two monsters got into fighting positions, and built up power like they were going to attack one another. There was a rumbling noise, and a minute later, the huge door was slightly ajar.

"More!" Jaden shouted. "It's working. We need more power!"

Neos and Cyber Angel - Benten focused more energy, still aiming at each other. But the Dark Gate only moved about half a meter a minute under the energy. At this rate, it was going to take a full hour before the door was completely open. Finally, Syrus became convinced that they needed his help after all, and summoned Super Vehicroid Stealth Union. Stealth Union built up attack power, aiming at the other two like it had become a battle-free-for-all. It's ATK power was higher than than the other two, so it was just the extra burst that was needed, and soon the Dark Gate was open. The way onward was hidden from view by an aura of dark blue energy. Jaden brushed his hand against it, and it felt like some kind of strange wind. Giving a determined frowned, he jumped into the Dark Gate's portal. Alexis and Syrus followed quickly after him.

'Jesse, hang on. I'll save you no matter what.'

The aura sucked them in, and before they could figure out what was going on, they started falling. Down they all went, until before long, they hit solid ground with a thud. Jaden was the first to recover. He looked around at the surroundings, and noticed that they had landed on the edge of a village. Groaning a little, Syrus and Alexis soon regained themselves as well.

Deciding to get a feel of where they landed, Jaden led the way off into the village. Alexis and Syrus tagged along behind. The village felt a little familiar, not too unlike the east village where they were from in the Dark World. But when they tried to talk to people here, they were avoided. Alexis noticed that she, Syrus, and Jaden were getting a lot of wary looks from the people. No, it was more like the people here were afraid to approach them. Was it because they were strangers to this place?

Awhile later, the three friends were resting in a square of the village. Just then, they were approached by a woman with a crystal ball tucked under her arm. Jaden recognized her as the same woman who pointed him to Zure's fortress back in the Dark World. He couldn't help but stare at her as she came up to them.

"You!" he exclaimed in shock. "How did you get here?"

The fortune-lady shrugged. "How indeed. Even I don't know how I get places sometimes."

"Jaden, do you know this lady?" Alexis asked, confused.

"She's the one who pointed me to Zure's fortress when I was looking for Tory," Jaden explained. He turned back to fortune teller. "What do you want?"

The lady shrugged again. "Nothing," she said, smirking. "I've just come to give you a warning about the one you've all come searching for."

"About Jesse? What is it?"

"You do not know the truth of the legend behind the Rainbow Dragon, do you? How it is to be summoned from your friend's heart into this world…"

Jaden fixed her with a hard glare. "Would you stop talking in riddles? If you know something about Yubel's plans, tell me!"

The fortune teller gave a wicked cackle. "The Rainbow Dragon is your friend's ultimate protector. Yubel believes that the way to call on the Dragon is to subject its possessor to unimaginable pain. Then it will appear."

"You mean by torturing him?" Jaden questioned, his eyes going wide with horror. "That's it, right? She's going to torture him to call on the Rainbow Dragon! But wait a minute, if the Dragon is Jesse's ultimate protector, it will try and stop her, right?"

The strange fortune teller walked off, cackling. "I wonder how long he will last."

And then she was gone.

"Dammit!" Jaden yelled, banging his fist against the ground. "Jesse! We have to find him!"

Alexis put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We will, Jaden. But it will do us no good to rush because you're frustrated. We have to act calmly to find Jesse."

Jaden fixed her a hard look, his eyes blazing a dangerous orange. "I can't be calm! Jesse's in serious trouble!"

Alexis hit him over the head with a sharp whack. "Jaden, you are about the biggest idiot I know! To jump recklessly into danger for someone."

Relaxing a little, Jaden stared at the ground. Tears welled in his eyes. "Jesse… He's more than just a friend. He's a really close friend, and he means a lot to me. Knowing he's being tortured right now to summon the Rainbow Dragon, I… can't just…"

Alexis smiled. "I'm sorry, and I know what you mean. So, we'd better get moving then. A big lightless place around here should't be too hard to find."

Syrus sighed, sagging a little. "Alexis, I wish I shared your confidence."

Jaden faced them and finally smiled. "Thanks, guys."

After their break, they decided that their first course of action would be get a hold of a map of this place. The world in which they had landed seemed to be similar to the Dark World, but the darkness was more evident here, and that caused fear. Everywhere they walked, people avoided them, refusing to talk. Jaden wondered if the people could tell that they had come looking for Yubel's castle. Yubel's power seemed to be more known on this side of the Gate, that any mention of her would just cause panicked fear. It was still a mystery to Jaden as to what Yubel did that caused people to be afraid of her. It seemed to be more than just that she was a Demon Witch. Because all this, finding her castle was going to be difficult without any aid at all. Jaden hoped with all his heart that the essence of the Crystal Beasts would protect the Rainbow Dragon and Jesse's heart until he arrived.

'Please, Jesse, hold on and keep your heart strong.'

Back in the dungeon of Yubel's castle, as if on Jaden's wishes, Jesse had been trying with all the strength he could muster to keep the depths of his heart hidden. He could feel the Crystal Beasts backing him up, their pure essence acting like a shield. But with each jolt from the electric pump machine go through his chest, the energy seemed to fade. The shield of his Beasts wouldn't hold forever. His screams had subsided for now into grunts of pain as he struggled to hold on with this strength of will. He was surprised when one of the Demon Soldiers suddenly turned off the power to the machine.

"This isn't working," the Soldier said to the other. "The essence of the Crystal Beasts shielding his heart is stronger than we thought; and his will as well."

"Then we'll just have to cause him so much pain that it will shatter."

The second Demon Soldier gave a nasty smile as he attached another set of cords, this time to the sides of Jesse's head. These cords were connected to a different machine that looked like it could cause energy claws to enter the mind. Jesse had fallen silent as he watched them, wondering what was going to happen. His earlier fear had faded and his will had taken over, but now he didn't know how long he could last.

The Demon Soldier activated the machine. In Jesse's mind, a huge set of dark metal claws came at him. A loud gulp of terror escaped him as it got closer, and he started to struggle. He hoped that the Crystal Beasts would continue to be his heart's shield. He imagined them before him, confidently smiling, that they would always protect him no matter what happened. The set of claws pushed at the essence shield. So far, the Crystal Beasts and Jesse's will held strong.

Unfortunately, then the other Demon Soldier activated the electric pump machine again. With the electric jolts and the scrapping of the claws, it felt like the whole of Jesse's inner mind and heart were being attacked from all directions. Then Demon Soldiers thought it was a good idea to subject his body to physical pain as well, and started to hit him with the spiked whips. Jesse's loud screams resumed, echoing throughout the dungeon. In his mind, the Crystals started to fade from view, and he cried and cried for them not to go. The electric jolts, the claws, and the whips continued without relent. Finally his heart could no longer withstand the pain, and the Crystal Beasts vanished, Ruby the last to disappear. Then, from the far depths of Jesse's heart, there came the loud roar of a dragon.

And there we are for today. ^^

The trains of thought just kept coming to me for this chapter. For some reason, I got so excited writing the parts involving Jesse. What is it that makes us want to subject such pain to our favourite characters? I feel kind of mortified at myself for thinking this actually. Poor Jesse. ^^; And also for some reason or another, the conversations that kept coming to me for Jaden, Alexis and Syrus in this chapter kept turning into arguments. Arguments for crazy reasons: the truth of a good friendship right there. XD Oh, the hike across the desert to the Dark Gate might seem a little short and lame, but I was kind of stuck on what should be done. If watching Pokemon has taught me anything, it's that characters find things faster by making their "creatures" do the work from the air. And I was hit by such a spell of writer's block on how to get the Dark Gate open. In the TV show, to get to through the portal to the Dark World, Jaden and his friends had their ace monsters materialize and attack it. But later, in front of the giant door in the desert, Zane and Jaden got into a duel. So, I got the weird idea to combine the two. I don't even really know if it worked out well. ^^;

Anyway, I'm getting pumped for the next few chapters of this story. The Rainbow Dragon is soon going to appear, a major duel is coming up, as well the appearance (finally) of dark king. ^^ Review please (or favourite), and I'll catch you later. Ciao! ^_^


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